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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28938051">Spitfire</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/WurtzKitten3515/pseuds/WurtzKitten3515'>WurtzKitten3515</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Hobbit (Jackson Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 03:40:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>40,288</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28938051</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/WurtzKitten3515/pseuds/WurtzKitten3515</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Katriana Baggins had always been an odd hobbit, quite the opposite of her brother Bilbo. So when thirteen dwarves and a wizard show up at Bag End, she jumps at the chance to go on an adventure. She didn't count on the dwarven king with striking blue eyes though.</p><p>I'm really bad with summaries, please give it a try.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kíli (Tolkien)/Tauriel (Hobbit Movies), Thorin Oakenshield/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A Strange Meeting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In a hole in the ground, there lives a hobbit. He is a well-to-do hobbit by the name of Bilbo Baggins. However, there is a second hobbit that rarely spends time in their little hole in the ground, whom many hobbits shy away from. Her name is Katriana Baggins, or simply Kat to those who she cares for. As with most hobbits, she stands at a meager three feet four inches tall and has your typical hobbit feet (leathery soles and warm reddish-brown hair on top), though her feet are slightly smaller than most would deem “normal.” Shiny, large, loose red curls sit atop her head typically in a messy ponytail, while her emerald green eyes are always ensuring she is aware of her surroundings, and despite spending so much time outdoors, her skin still has an ivory glow about it. Her brother always says that she looks like a porcelain doll in many ways, but that her attitude couldn’t be farther from the prim and proper toys.<br/>
Kat had always been a bit odd to those in the town of The Shire. While most inhabitants are content with the monotonous life of farming and cooking and tending to their gardens, Kat craves adventure. She and many others blame it on her Took ancestry, but for one reason or another she has always loved running around the fields with the boys, play-fighting, climbing trees, and even learning how to use weapons. Of course, no self-respecting hobbit would wield a weapon, so she was forced to travel to the nearby city of Bree to learn from a human who lives there, leading her to rarely be at their family home of Bag End.<br/>
Her mentor is a kind man who allows her to stay with him so long as she helps him tend to the horses, cook their meals, and keep the house tidy. It’s a small price to pay for the things that he has taught her. He had been injured in battle by an orc, leaving him unable to do as much as he needed to, so she does whatever he can’t do to repay him. He may be a bit gruff, but she knows he cares about her in an almost grandfatherly way.<br/>
Which is why, in the morning after her weapons lesson, Kat walks toward the barn where her mentor is surely feeding extra apples to his horse Sol and her Welsh Cob Fiachra. He has such a bad habit of doing that.<br/>
“Ciarán, do you mind if I take Fiachra and visit Bilbo,” she calls as she enters.<br/>
At the sound of her voice, he quickly hides his hand behind his back, likely hiding the apple he was going to feed to Sol. He may be older, but he looks at Kat like a child with his hand caught in the cookie jar.<br/>
“Of course, she’s yours after all. Send a letter if you’re going to stay for more than a day or two please. You have your sword? Your bow? Your cloak? You know I worry,” he instructs.<br/>
Mounting her horse, she nods at him fondly as she leads Fiachra out of the stables. Calling out a final goodbye, Kat sets a pace toward The Shire. Her favorite part about the trip from Bree to the Shire is the scenery. She’ll never get tired of seeing the trees, flowers, fields and hills as she travels. As usual when traveling, the day passes quickly and night is falling as she draws near Bag End. She should get to Bilbo by supper time, if not a bit earlier.<br/>
“Excuse me, sir,” calls a deep voice.<br/>
Kat turns out of curiosity and finds an unfamiliar dwarf walking toward her. He has long dark hair with a little silver in it, a long beard, stands decently tall for a dwarf, and carries himself almost regally. With a start, Kat realizes he had been talking to her.<br/>
“I’m sorry,” she asks, bringing Fiachra to a halt.<br/>
“My apologies. I thought you were a male,” he says as he bows to her.<br/>
Unmounting Fiachra, Kat realizes she now has to look up at the man. Upon closer inspection, her emerald eyes meet cobalt blue and her curiosity grows. What business could he possibly have in the Shire?<br/>
“No need to apologize. It’s dark and I was wearing my cloak. Anyone could have made the same mistake. Do you need help with anything,” she asks, returning his bow.<br/>
“I do. I seem to have gotten myself turned around a bit. I’m looking for a home on a hill and it should have a mark on the door to identify it,” he explains.<br/>
Furrowing her brows, she thinks of all the homes that may fit that description. The first one she can think of is Bag End, but she knows Bilbo wouldn’t know a dwarf and he certainly wouldn’t allow a mark on his door. He had just made her paint that door after all.<br/>
“I can help you, but do you mind if I drop Fiachra off at my brother’s? She’s surely tired after the journey,” she offers.<br/>
The dwarf nods and they make their way toward Bag End. It’s quiet and awkward for a few moments, as the dwarf seems to not like socializing and Kat has never been the best at talking to others. Eventually, she clears her throat a bit and looks toward her mysterious companion.<br/>
“I never did get your name. I’m Katriana Baggins,” she says.<br/>
“Thorin Oakenshield, at your service miss,” he responds.<br/>
She wrinkles her nose with a chuckle at the word “miss” and shakes her head lightly.<br/>
“Please, just call me Kat. I’m no miss,” she states.<br/>
As they draw nearer to Bag End, Fiachra begins to get restless. She doesn’t seem to enjoy the slow pace of her shorter companions.<br/>
“Fiachra, yupqu xefn. Fo'pp zo uh zipze'j jeen.,” Kat orders. (Fiachra, calm down. We’ll be at Bilbo’s soon.)<br/>
Thorin looks at her curiously but, before he can say anything, Fiachra gently rams her head into Kat’s shoulder, causing her to fall to the ground. Fiachra winnies as though she were proud of herself while Kat glares up at her from the ground. Thorin seems at a loss and can’t seem to determine which of them to look at, the angry hobbit or the unruly horse.<br/>
“Curse Ciarán for ever teaching you how to do that. You’re lucky I don’t take Sol and leave the two of you to deal with each other,” huffs Kat as she gets up and dusts off her slacks.<br/>
“Your horse seems to have quite the attitude,” states Thorin.<br/>
“Ciarán always says that the attitude of the horse has to match that of their rider. I suppose that says what he thinks of my attitude then,” Kat chuckles.<br/>
As they near Bag End, something on the door catches Kat’s eye. Was that a mark on the door? Bilbo has just had her paint that door! What could he have possibly done in the week she had been gone to ruin it already? Wait, hadn’t Thorin said something about a house on a hill with a mark on the door? What in middle earth had Bilbo gotten into while she was away?<br/>
“Is this the place you were looking for,” she asks hesitantly.<br/>
“Ah, yes. Thank you for leading me here,” says Thorin.<br/>
Without waiting to explain the situation to her new companion, Kat storms up to the door of the familiar home and pounds hard on the door three times. She rarely knocks to enter her own family home, but she has no idea who else her brother could have in there if the dwarf now staring at her in shock was anything to go by. Her ire only grew when it wasn’t Bilbo who answered the door, but an older man in grey robes whom she recognized immediately and behind him were even more dwarves.<br/>
“Gandalf. What in the world is going on here? And why is there a mark carved into the door,” she snaps.<br/>
“Mark? There is no mark on the door, I had it painted only a week ago,” exclaims her brother as he pushes his way through the other dwarves standing off to the side.<br/>
“Had me paint it I think is what you mean. And I can guarantee you that there is a mark on the door, I saw it myself,” she huffs.<br/>
“Your sister is right, I put the mark there myself. Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield. Kat, I see the two of you have already met,” introduces Gandalf.<br/>
Thorin lifts an eyebrow at Kat as he enters the house as well, looking between her and Bilbo in slight surprise. While it’s true that the siblings don’t look much alike, similarities could be found in the way they scrunch their noses and eyebrows when irritated. It almost reminds Thorin of an annoyed rabbit twitching its nose. Ignoring his observations, he stalks toward Bilbo like an animal stalking its prey, causing Kat to tense a little as a wave of protective instinct goes through her.<br/>
“So, this is the Hobbit. Tell me Mister Baggins, have you done much fighting,” Thorin questions as he began circling Bilbo<br/>
“Pardon me,” mutters Bilbo, anxiously catching Kat’s eye.<br/>
“Axe or sword? What is your weapon of choice,” continues Thorin.<br/>
“Well I do have some skills at Conkers if you must know. But I fail to see how that’s relevant,” says Bilbo.<br/>
Kat sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. Oh Bilbo, that did not help your case at all. Honestly, what is going on here?<br/>
“Thought as much. He looks more like a grocer than a burglar,” laughs Thorin, causing Kat’s face to flush in anger.<br/>
“While I may not know why my brother needs to look like a burglar or have any skills with weapons, I do know that you and your company are in our home, eating our food, without even letting us know you would be showing up! The least you could do is not be rude. And I prefer a sword and arrows, if you were ever planning on asking me,” rants Kat, glaring at the dwarves.<br/>
Silence falls quickly as they all stare at her, Bilbo shifting closer as though attempting to shield her from their gazes. It seems like no one has ever used that tone with Thorin before, as he looked as if he was trying to decide whether he was impressed or offended. He seems to be leaning more toward being offended, while two younger dwarves can barely contain their laughter.<br/>
“Now, I hope some food has been saved for Thorin and myself to eat while we figure out why exactly you’re all here,” she snips, moving toward the kitchen.<br/>
“Kat, zotugo,” hisses Bilbo, astonished at her rude behavior toward house guests. (Kat, behave.)<br/>
“I pougo wek eno foor unx jaxxonpch eak teajo ij wippox fiht xfukgoj unx fibukxj unx chea odmoyh quo he jiqumpch zotugo,” she questions. (I leave for one week and suddenly our house is filled with dwarves and wizards and you expect me to simply behave?)<br/>
Finding some remaining stew, Kat quickly divides it into two bowls along with two drinks and some bread rolls. Before she can grab them to deliver it to Thorin, two pairs of hands reach around her and snatch the food and drinks. She startles and spins around, seeing the two younger dwarves that had been laughing earlier. Looking more closely, she can see that they both resemble Thorin in many ways. One is a blonde man with a braided beard and mustache, broad shoulders, and steely blue eyes. The other seems slightly younger with brown hair, a smooth and mischievous face, and the same blue eyes.<br/>
“Let us help you with that,” says the blonde, snapping Kat out of her thoughts.<br/>
“Yeah, you already had to deal with uncle Thorin so it’s the least we could do,” laughs the brunette.<br/>
“Uncle Thorin? You two are related to him,” asks Kat in disbelief. How could these two seemingly lighthearted young dwarves be related to the jerk who had insulted her brother?<br/>
“Our mother, Dis, is his sister. I’m Fili,” says the blonde.<br/>
“I’m Kili,” says the brunette.<br/>
“At your service,” they chorus as they bow slightly.<br/>
“Kat, at yours. So, what are you all doing here? Not that I don’t enjoy your company, I’m sure you’re all very fun to be around, but my brother doesn’t typically associate with anyone other than the hobbits of the Shire,” she explains.<br/>
“Now that uncle is here, he should explain everything to your brother,” offers Fili.<br/>
Before she could ask anymore questions, they led her out of the kitchen and into the dining room, sitting her next to Thorin. Sighing quietly to herself, she slowly eats her portion of the food. Due to the restricted diet she became used to with Ciarán, she quickly becomes full and silently passes her remaining rolls to Thorin who simply raises an eyebrow at her. She sees Bilbo looking at her in concern, but quickly averts her eyes back to the stoic dwarf next to her. After a quick round of introductions, with many “at your service”’s being offered, Kat decides to get down to business.<br/>
“At the risk of sounding even more rude than my brother thinks I am, why are you all here? I’m simply confused as Bilbo isn’t typically one to have such… rowdy friends, as I’m sure you’re now aware,” she chuckles.<br/>
“Aye, we’ve noticed. Which leads to my next question,” says Balin, turning toward Thorin. “What news from the meeting in Ered Luin? Did they all come?”<br/>
“Aye, envoys from all seven kingdoms,” rumbles Thorin.<br/>
“And what did the dwarves of the Iron Hill say? Is Dain with us,” asks Dwalin.<br/>
“They will not come,” answers Thorin somberly.<br/>
The other dwarves are visibly upset by this news, closing their eyes and leaning back in their chairs.<br/>
“They say this quest is our, and ours alone,” continues Thorin.<br/>
Kat sits up a bit straighter in her chair, looking at Thorin curiously. Out of the corner of her eye she can see Bilbo reacting in a similar manner, likely against his better judgment.<br/>
“You’re doing a quest,” asks Bilbo, curiosity getting the better of him finally.<br/>
“Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light,” suggests Gandalf.<br/>
As Bilbo leaves to get a candle, Gandalf pulls a piece of parchment out of his robe. Upon closer inspection, Kat realizes that he’s holding a map. Maps had always been an interest of Bilbo’s that Kat couldn’t understand until this moment, when the thought of following this map on a quest is a thought that she can no longer shake. She could go farther away than Bree? Gandalf places the map upon the table and points to a mountain as Bilbo brings a candle forward.<br/>
“The Lonely Mountain,” Bilbo reads, leaning toward the map.<br/>
“Aye, Oin has read the portents, and the portents say: it is time,” says Gloin.<br/>
“Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain as it was foretold. When the birds of the old return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end,” announces Oin.<br/>
At that, Kat and Bilbo share a glance.<br/>
“I’m sorry, what beast,” asks Bilbo.<br/>
“Well that would be a reference to Smaug the terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our age. Airborne fire breather, teeth like razors, claws like meat hooks, extremely fond of precious metals,” answers Bofur.<br/>
“Yes, I know what a dragon is,” huffs Bilbo, seeming offended.<br/>
Ori, the youngest of the bunch from what Kat has gathered, jumps to his feet with a yell of “I’m not afraid, I’m up for it. I’ll give him a taste of the dwarfish iron right up his jacksy!”<br/>
The others cheer him on while Dori pulls him back down into his seat, scolding him in the process.<br/>
“The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us, but we number just thirteen, and not thirteen of the best, nor brightest,” states Balin.<br/>
“Hey! Who are you calling dim,” shouts Ori.<br/>
Everyone begins clamoring and arguing, rising to their feet as they all fight to be heard over the others. It’s enough to make Kat jump a bit in her seat, though no one but Thorin was close enough to notice.<br/>
“We may be few in number but we’re fighters, all of us! To the last dwarf,” cries Fili.<br/>
“And you forget we have a wizard in our company. Gandalf will have killed hundreds of dragons in his time,” adds Kili.<br/>
Gandalf, who had been smoking his pipe, begins coughing. Spluttered responses of “Oh, well. No, uh, I .... I wouldn’t say…,” escape from him in his surprise.<br/>
“How many then,” asks Dori expectantly.<br/>
“What,” asks Gandalf.<br/>
“Well, how many dragons have you killed? Go on, give us a number,” shouts Dori.<br/>
At Dori’s shout, and the resounding shouts of the other dwarves as they begin arguing again, Kat jumps once again and sinks into her seat a little further. Angry shouting had always bothered her and set her on edge, but thirteen angry yelling dwarves was certainly giving her some unnecessary anxiety. Again, everyone was too preoccupied to notice the skittish hobbit except for Thorin, who takes pity on her and decides to stop the others. Thorin catches Kat’s eye before rising from the table and making his voice clear.<br/>
“Enough! If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too? Rumors have begun to spread. The dragon Smaug has not been seen for sixty years. Eyes look East to the mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor,” commands Thorin.<br/>
As the others cheer, Thorin says something in dwarvish and Kat can see why they follow him. He certainly has the countenance of a leader.<br/>
“You forget the front gate is sealed. There is no way into the mountain,” reminds Balin.<br/>
“That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true,” says Gandalf, holding up a key.<br/>
“How came you by this,” asks Thorin lowly.<br/>
“It was given to me by your father by Train, for safekeeping. It is yours now,” answers Gandalf, giving the key to Thorin.<br/>
“If there’s a key, there must be a door,” says Fili.<br/>
“Brilliant deduction,” Kat mutters, not intending to say so aloud. Thorin gives a muffled chuckle and Kat ducks her head in embarrassment.<br/>
Gandalf points to a portion of the map with runes written across it. Kat looks at them and, despite her love for languages, unfortunately can’t seem to understand the one on the parchment. Languages have always been a hobby that she enjoys, so it bothers her greatly to know she can’t read this one.<br/>
“These runes speak of a hidden passage to the lower halls,” says Gandalf.<br/>
“There’s another way in,” breathes Kili.<br/>
“Well, if we can find it, but dwarf doors are invisible when closed. The answer lies hidden somewhere in this map, and I do not have the skill to find it, but there are others in Middle Earth who can. The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage. But if we’re careful and cleaver, I believe that it can be done,” explains Gandalf.<br/>
“That’s why we need a burglar,” says Ori.<br/>
Something in Kat’s stomach twists at that statement, looking between Gandalf and Bilbo. Surely Gandalf hadn’t brought them here assuming Bilbo would be their burglar, right? Bilbo would be cross enough whenever Kat would climb trees and wander too far from home, so obviously he wouldn’t readily agree to traveling halfway across Middle Earth on an adventure!<br/>
“And a good one too. An expert, I’d imagine,” says Bilbo.<br/>
“Chea uzjepaho weep Zipze Zuvvinj,” mutters Kat. (You absolute fool Bilbo Baggins.)<br/>
“And are you,” asks Gloin, prompting the others to look at Bilbo expectantly.<br/>
“Am I what,” asks Bilbo.<br/>
“He said he’s an expert,” cries Oin happily, obviously mishearing through his busted ear trumpet.<br/>
“Me? No! No, no no! I’m not a burglar. I’ve never stolen a thing in my life! That was always Kat’s doing,” cries Bilbo, panic flitting across his face.<br/>
“And I’m afraid I have to agree with Mr. Baggins. He’s hardly burglar material,” agrees Balin.<br/>
“Aye, the wild is no place for gentle folk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves, nor is it a place for a frail maiden,” says Dwalin.<br/>
Kat’s face flushes in anger as the dwarves once again begin speaking over one another. How dare he! He doesn’t even know if Kat can fight, and calling her frail is the last mistake he’ll make with her. She happens to be a sturdy built hobbit, stronger than most if she does say so herself! Gandalf cuts everyone off as he rises, darkness seeming to flow from him as he does so.<br/>
“Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is! And I can assure you that Kat is no frail maiden, but a fierce opponent on the field. Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact, they can pass unseen by most if they choose, and while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of a dwarf, the scent of a hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage. You asked me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr. Baggins, and I will also suggest Ms. Baggins. There’s a lot more to them than appearances suggest. And he’s got a great deal more to offer than any of you know, including himself. You must trust me on this,” announces Gandalf.<br/>
“Very well. We’ll do it your way. Give him the contract,” grumbles Thorin.<br/>
Balin rises to his feet, holding a large piece of parchment. Kat raises an eyebrow at the contract, curious about the contents. Balin hands the parchment to Thorin who then passes it to Bilbo.<br/>
“It’s just the usual summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, so forth,” explains Balin.<br/>
“Funeral arrangements,” Bilbo questions as he begins reading over the contract.<br/>
“Oh this can’t end well,” mutters Kat, uncaring that Thorin can hear.<br/>
“I cannot guarantee their safety,” Thorin whispers to Gandalf.<br/>
“Understood,” agrees Gandalf.<br/>
“Nor will I be responsible for their fate,” continues Thorin.<br/>
“Agreed,” says Gandalf.<br/>
“I will be able to protect myself and my brother just fine, thank you,” Kat interjects.<br/>
Kat looks at Thorin for another moment, ensuring that he knew she was serious, before turning back to Bilbo. He is going through the contract, reading aloud quietly.<br/>
“‘Total’s cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one fourteenth of total profit if any.’ Seems fair. ‘The present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof, including, but not limited to... lacerations, evisceration, and... incineration,’” squeaks Bilbo.<br/>
“Oh, aye, he’ll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye,” states Bofur.<br/>
Kat stands as she notices Bilbo looking progressively more queasy and faint. She slowly takes a few steps toward him, bracing for whatever he may do.<br/>
“You alright laddie,” asks Balin.<br/>
“Yeah, I fe- I feel a bit faint,” breathes Bilbo.<br/>
“Maybe you should sit down Bilbo,” suggests Kat, taking another step toward him.<br/>
“Think furnace with wings,” offers Bofur.<br/>
Kat gives him a look and takes another step toward her brother, hoping he wasn’t going to do what she thinks he was going to do.<br/>
“I-I-I need air,” Bilbo stammers.<br/>
“Flash of light, searing pain, then poof! You’re nothing more than a pile of ash,” continues Bofur.<br/>
“I mean this in the nicest way possible, but shut the hell up Bofur,” says Kat.<br/>
Bilbo straightens up for a moment, thinks over what was just said, and makes eye contact with Kat.<br/>
“No,” he mutters.<br/>
Kat rushes forward, knowing what was about to happen, and manages to catch Bilbo as he faints. Grunting a bit as she holds him up, she glares at Bofur for a moment before dragging the unconscious hobbit into the sitting room. Gandalf joins her in the sitting room and she motions toward Bilbo before stepping out to give them some privacy once Bilbo wakes up. Now she can send a message to Ciarán to let him know she most likely wasn’t going to make it home anytime soon.<br/>
Walking past the dwarves, she hangs her cloak up as she exits the house and takes a deep breath of the cool night air. Fiachra trots over to her as though sensing her owner’s ire, gently nudging Kat in the shoulder with her head. Kat smiles a bit as she pats Fiachra’s head before pulling a small bit of parchment out of her pocket. As she’s scribbling a short note onto the small parchment, she hears the door open somewhere behind her but doesn’t pause to look. Listening a bit closer, she can hear Balin say something before footsteps approach her from behind.<br/>
“That was a good catch back there lass,” he compliments.<br/>
“Thank you. I know his ‘I’m going to pass out’ expression well by this point,” she chuckles.<br/>
Looking up from her parchment, she holds out her hand and lets out a shrill whistle followed by four shorter trills, causing Balin to startle slightly. A moment later, a small multicolored bird flies up and perches on her outstretched hand. The bird had a blue head, purple plumage on its neck and down the upper side of its wings, blue on the underside of the wings, and an orange belly. All in all, it’s a beautiful looking bird.<br/>
“Hello lovely. It’s been a little while since I’ve seen you, hasn’t it,” coos Kat.<br/>
The bird trills in response, ruffling its feathers a little happily.<br/>
“I don’t believe I’ve seen a bird like that before. What kind is it,” asks Balin.<br/>
“He’s a starling. Their flight is strong and direct, so I personally enjoy asking them to deliver messages for me,” explains Kat.<br/>
She gently ties the bit of parchment onto the bird’s leg and offers him a few berries as a reward.<br/>
“My lovely songbird, you remember where Ciarán lives don’t you,” she asks.<br/>
The bird trills again and hops around on her palm as though he was telling her that he did remember.<br/>
“Good. I need you to give him this message for me,” she instructs.<br/>
He trills one more time and takes flight, leaving sight in the dark evening sky quickly.<br/>
“You seem to have quite a way with animals,” compliments Balin.<br/>
“I like animals much more than I like people. People tend to have ulterior motives, whereas most animals won’t pretend to like you and then stab you in the back,” chuckles Kat, turning to face Balin at last.<br/>
He laughs for a moment before something catches his eye, glancing down at the little bit of skin showing Kat’s collarbone. She catches his look and shifts slightly, knowing he had caught sight of the scar that poked above her tunic.<br/>
“I didn’t notice your scar before. If I may, what happened to give a gentle hobbit a scar like that,” he asks.<br/>
“Nothing like the battles I’m sure you’ve seen. It was just an orc raid that happened across my mentor’s farmhouse,” she sighs.<br/>
“Your mentor?”<br/>
“A man who lives just outside Bree. He’s the one who taught me how to fight, the one I just sent my songbird to. He was a soldier when he was younger.”<br/>
“If he was a soldier, couldn’t he have handled a small raiding party?”<br/>
“He was injured in battle and lost a bit of his mobility. I do things around his farm in exchange for my lessons. He would have been able to handle one or two orcs, but there were six or seven of them that showed up. He told me to run but I couldn’t just leave him like that. We managed to take down a few of them, but it wasn’t enough. They held us for a day or two before we managed to escape, but not before they had their fun. I’m sure you know what an orc’s fun entails. The one you see is a burn mark.”<br/>
“I’m sorry lass. You shouldn’t have had to go through that.”<br/>
“Don’t. It just made me realize I had to work harder, made me realize how truly savage orcs are. Which is why, no matter what Bilbo decides, I want to help you reclaim your home. Everyone deserves a home.”<br/>
Turning to go back into the house, Kat finds Thorin standing nearby watching the exchange between his advisor and the odd hobbit. Quickly averting her eyes, she stalks back into the house and sets about cleaning the wrecked hobbit hole. After some time, deep singing begins to reverberate through the walls, lulling her into a sense of calm. She watches from the doorway as the dwarves finish their song, her eyes falling upon the sullen king singing about his fallen kingdom. Even as her head hits the pillow that night, the look in his eyes doesn’t leave her mind.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Adventure Begins</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter is a bit of an informational chapter and a filler. If I combined this with what I'm planning for the next chapter, it would be really long and I don't want to do that to you guys. Please let me know what you guys think!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Waking early the next morning, Kat decides the first order of business will be taking a warm bath. She decides to use her favorite scent of black raspberry vanilla because this would likely be her last bath for a while, if this quest goes to plan. After running a brush through her now wet hair, she keeps the tie around her wrist for the time being, allowing her hair to dry easier.<br/>	Sneaking past the sleeping dwarves and into the kitchen, she starts making breakfast using the remaining food in the house. If Bilbo doesn’t end up coming with them today, he was definitely going to have to go out and buy more food. Humming and swaying the entire time, she thinks back to when she used to help her mother in the kitchen. With a big stack of pancakes, bacon, cuts of country ham, biscuits, gravy, hash browns, and assorted fruits set on the table, and eggs frying in the pan in front of her, she spins from the counter to grab some drinks. Pulling out a jug of milk, a jug of orange juice, and a jug of apple juice, she turns to put them on the table and almost runs into Thorin who had managed to sneak up on her.<br/>	“Oh! Thorin, I didn’t hear you come in,” she gasps.<br/>	She sets down the jugs she had previously almost spilled on Thorin and turns to find Fili and Kili standing in the doorway to the kitchen.<br/>	“Good morning boys! I cleaned my brother out of all his food, so you’d better sit down and enjoy it,” she says at them.<br/>	“Kili, I may have just found my One,” jokes Fili.<br/>	“Seems we may have to fight over this one brother, because I think she may be my One as well,” responds Kili.<br/>	“What are you two on about,” she asks as she sets the plate of eggs down.<br/>	“Dwarves have significant others, whom we call our One, that we stay with for the rest of our lives. I believe humans refer to them as soul mates,” answers Balin, entering the kitchen.<br/>	“That’s sweet. I think that’s a wonderful thing to have,” Kat grins.<br/>	As more dwarves filter into the kitchen, Kat decides to take a seat between Bofur and Bifur, shoveling some fruit, bacon and a small pancake onto her own plate. Bifur offers her the jug of orange juice and she takes it with a nod of thanks. Thorin and Dwalin excuse themselves after a little while, going off to talk about the upcoming quest. Observing the odd group for a few moments, Kat notices that Bifur rarely talks and, when he does, it’s always in what she can only assume is dwarvish.<br/>	“I’m sorry if this is a touchy subject, but may I ask if you know how to speak common,” she asks him.<br/>	“He can understand common just fine, but he can’t speak it anymore. That orc axe in his forehead made it so that he can only communicate using Khuzdul and hand gestures,” explains Bofur.<br/>	“I see. Are the hand gestures a specified language or are they whatever gets the point across,” she asks, curiosity spiking at the idea of a new language.<br/>	“It’s called Iglishmêk, a dwarvish language of hand gestures. It’s only known to other dwarves,” answers Balin from across the table.<br/>	“That’s amazing,” grins Kat, turning toward Bifur. “May I see one of the signs? No one has to explain what it means if I’m not allowed to know, I’m just curious about how the signs may look.”<br/>	Hearing no arguments from the table, Bifur signs a few different words, none of which Kat can understand without context. The other dwarves begin laughing as she attempts to mimic the words she had been shown, causing her to halt her movements in fear of saying anything rude.<br/>	“That wasn’t quite what he said,” laughs Bofur.<br/>	Huffing, Kat turns to face Bifur directly, ignoring the others.<br/>	“Can I try to teach you a language? It’s a language of hand signals as well, so I’m sure you’ll be able to pick it up quickly,” she asks.<br/>	Bifur furrows his brows a bit but nods, seeming hesitant.<br/>	“Don’t worry, Bilbo and I are the only ones who understand this language. We made it up along with a spoken language when we were younger so we could get into trouble more discreetly,” she explains.<br/>	The next few minutes are spent with her showing him the different signs, beginning with the common alphabet so they could easily communicate without him knowing all of the signs. Bifur signs eagerly with a big smile on his face, picking up the signs far quicker than Kat expected.<br/>	“You’re a natural at this! I don’t think even Bilbo and I picked it up this fast,” she laughs.<br/>	“I’m excited to be able to communicate clearly with you,” he signs in response.<br/>	Kat’s responding laugh is cut short when Thorin and Dwalin enter the room.<br/>	“What is going on here? Outsiders are not to know Iglishmêk,” booms Thorin, causing Kat to jump.<br/>	“It’s not Iglishmêk. I’m teaching him how to sign in a language that I will be able to understand, that way I don’t break your rules and I can still communicate with a member of the company I plan to travel with for who knows how long,” she explains quietly.<br/>	Forking her remaining bacon onto Bombur’s plate, she pushes away from the table and sets her plate in the sink.<br/>	“If you’ll excuse me, I need to pack a few more things before leaving,” she says.<br/>	Without waiting for a response, she exits the kitchen and returns to her room. Leaning against the door for a moment to recompose herself, she takes a few deep breaths before turning to her pack lying on her bed. Leafing through the contents, she goes through her checklist one last time.<br/>	“Rations, coins, rope, water, cutlery, dishes, blanket, extra cooking supplies and a handkerchief for Bilbo, a spare change of clothes, travel soap, and a brush,” she lists aloud.<br/>	Strapping her sword around her waist and a few knives to her thighs, she swings her quiver of arrows over her shoulder and grabs her pack and bow before exiting the room again. She finds the dwarves and Gandalf waiting outside along with a pack of ponies and a large horse. Bilbo is still nowhere to be seen, though she still remains hopeful that he will join them.<br/>	“We can wait no longer. We must assume Mr. Baggins will not be joining us,” instructs Thorin.<br/>	As everyone readies their respective horses, Bifur joins Kat and assists her up onto Fiachra. He pats the horse on the nose gently before turning back to its rider.<br/>	“Are you alright? You seemed frightened earlier,” he signs.<br/>	Sighing, Kat looks around at the group to see a few of them watching the exchange. Knowing only Bifur can understand the new sign language, she decides to reply using that so the others won’t know her response.<br/>	“I’m alright. He just startled me,” she replies.<br/>	Bifur gives her a look but she waves him over to his own pony. She follows the others as they set off down the road out of the Shire. Settling between Fili and Kili, Kat allows Fiachra to guide herself, knowing she wouldn’t wander from the group. A few of the dwarves begin to bet on whether Bilbo was going to show up, throwing pouches of coins to one another as the betting pool grew against her brother.<br/>	“What about you Kat? Do you think he’s going to show,” asks Kili.<br/>	“I do. My brother may be many things, but he is certainly curious and that curiosity is going to drive him to join us,” she answers.<br/>	“Care to bet on that,” jokes Bofur.<br/>	“I’ll bet the remainder of my coins that he’ll show up,” she responds, throwing her pouch of coins at him.<br/>	“You’ll have no money to purchase essentials when we reach Bree,” taunts Dwalin.<br/>	“Or I will have double what I already have,” she retorts.<br/>	“The lass is confident, I’ll certainly give her that,” laughs Dwalin.<br/>	As time passes and they progress farther from Bag End, Kat begins to feel restless. This will be her first time traveling farther than the town of Bree, her first time truly entering the wild lands beyond. Yes, her fighting skills have gotten better since her last encounter with orcs, but that was only a small raiding party. On a quest like this, she will certainly find much larger, nastier things than that.<br/>	Fili and Kili, as though sensing her rising discomfort, begin to make idle conversation with her. Their line of questions are normal, wondering about her family, her life in the Shire, how close she and Bilbo were. They seem to be particularly interested when Ciarán is mentioned, Kili asking about her training with a bow and Fili asking about her sword. She explains that she had grown accustomed to a smaller diet than her fellow hobbits in preparation for any traveling she may do at the suggestion of her mentor, and that she and Bilbo had their own language since they were children.<br/>	After a while of getting to know the two princes, she had completely relaxed. While the group was still quite loud and rowdy, she finds that she quite enjoys the liveliness of her new companions. Having nothing better to do, she begins braiding her hair back, finally getting tired of it constantly blowing into her face.<br/>	“I forget how long my hair is until I wear it down. Curse this ridiculous curly mess,” she huffs.<br/>	“Your hair is beautiful lass, don’t curse such a blessing,” chides Bofur.<br/>	“Maybe to you but most hobbits like tight ringlet curls. I suppose I’m the opposite of a hobbit’s beauty standard in most ways,” she laughs.<br/>	“Then they don’t know what they’re missing,” says Bofur.<br/>	“Wait! Wait,” comes a yell from behind.<br/>	As the party comes to a stop, they all turn to see Bilbo running toward them while frantically waving the contract. Coming to a stop, he huffs and puffs for a minute before handing the contract to Balin.<br/>	“I signed it,” says Bilbo, looking over to Kat proudly.<br/>	“Everything appears to be in order. Welcome, master Baggins, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield,” announces Balin.<br/>	“Give him a pony,” grumbles Thorin.<br/>	“No, no, no, no. That… that won’t be necessary. Thank you. I’m sure I can keep up on foot. Yeah, I-I’ve done my fair share of walking holidays, you know? Even got as far as Frog Morton once,” rambles Bilbo anxiously.<br/>	Fili and Kili haul him up onto a pony by his arms, causing Kat to laugh. As they all ride along in the woods, Bilbo rides on his pony, looking very uncomfortable.<br/>	“Come on, Nori! Pay up,” calls Oin.<br/>	The dwarves begin throwing bags of money to one another, causing Kat to dodge a few poorly aimed projectiles. Laughing, she catches her own share and pockets it, looking at her brother’s confused expression.<br/>	“What’s that about,” he asks.<br/>	“Oh, they took wagers on whether or not you’d turn up. Most of them bet that you wouldn’t,” answers Gandalf.<br/>	“And what did you think,” questions Bilbo.<br/>	Gandalf suddenly catches a bag of money of his own, winking at Kat as he does so.<br/>	“My dear fellow, I never doubted you for a second. Neither did your sister,” says Gandalf.<br/>	Bilbo suddenly sneezes, catching Kat’s attention. There go his allergies.<br/>	“Oh, it’s horsehair. Having a reaction,” he mutters.<br/>	He begins searching his pockets for a handkerchief he surely forgot to grab. Sensing his growing panic, Kat reaches into her own pack and pulls out the spare she packed for him.<br/>	“Here, I figured you would forget yours. I also have some extra dishes and cutlery for you,” she tells him.<br/>	“How did you even know I was going to show up, let alone forget my handkerchief,” he asks.<br/>	“I know you better than anyone in Middle Earth Bilbo, give me a little credit,” she laughs.<br/>	Looking around at the dwarves, her eyes are drawn to the front of the group toward the brooding king. She shakes her head and focuses again on Bilbo who was giving her a look she recognizes as concern.<br/>	“Chea xixn'h ouh quayt pujh nivth. I temo chea uho u zivvok zkourwujh,” he questions. (You didn't eat much last night. I hope you ate a bigger breakfast.)<br/>	“I uho jequo wkaih unx munyuroj. Zojixoj, fo'ko veinv he tugo he voh ajox he kuhieninv eak weex,” she sighs. (I ate some fruit and pancakes. Besides, we're going to have to get used to rationing our food.)<br/>	“Kat you’re far too thin. Ever since you got hurt, you haven’t been eating enough and you’re running yourself ragged,” he scolds.<br/>	His switch back to common and the stern tone of his voice grabs the attention of a few of the dwarves. Bofur and Bifur give her concerned looks, Fili and Kili look confused, and even Thorin tilts his head slightly in their direction.<br/>	“Bilbo, I’m fine. Maybe in hobbit standards I’m a little underweight, but I’m hardly starving myself. And my injuries have nothing to do with it,” she sighs.<br/>	“What was done to you-,” starts Bilbo.<br/>	“-Was horrible but has nothing to do with the matter at hand. Please don’t do this again, I’m not some poor little victim to pity and I refuse to be treated as such,” she snaps.<br/>	She spurs Fiachra to the front of the group, arriving next to Balin and Dwalin. Ignoring the looks she was being given, she turns to Balin and smiles slightly at the older dwarf.<br/>	“So I was wondering, could I know more about your culture and such? I’ve never had a chance to learn about dwarves before,” she asks.<br/>➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳<br/>After a very informative history lesson from Balin and a day’s worth of travel, they stop to make camp. As multiple members of the party fall asleep, Kat stays awake and stares at the stars above. Bilbo seems unable to sleep as well due to the snores of various dwarves and eventually gives up, going to feed his pony an apple.<br/>“Good girl! Here’s a good girl. It’s our little secret, Myrtle. Just tell no one,” he shushes.<br/>Kat chuckles a bit at her brother’s love of the animal before a loud shrieking is heard in the distance. Blood turning to ice in her veins at the familiar sound, she bolts into a sitting position and reaches for her sword sitting off to the side. Her eyes scan their surroundings, looking for the source of the noise.<br/>“What was that,” asks Bilbo.<br/>“Orcs,” answers Kili.<br/>“Orcs,” squeaks Bilbo, frantically looking around for Kat.<br/>Kat sees Thorin shift nearby from where he had been lying and realizes he had also been awoken by the sounds. She locks eyes with him for a moment before shaking her head, letting him know silently that the orcs weren’t close enough to be a danger to their party for the time being.<br/>“Throat cutters.There’d be dozens of them out there. The low lands are crawling with them,” says Fili.<br/>“They strike, in the wee small hours, when everyone’s asleep. Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood,” continues Kili.<br/>The two dwarves laugh as they continue to tease Bilbo, who is beginning to look more and more worried. Kat stiffens in anger as the two mock the seriousness of the danger orcs could cause, throwing a heated glare at them which Thorin seems to mirror.<br/>“You think that’s funny? You think a night raid by orcs is a joke,” asks Thorin.<br/>“We didn’t mean anything by it,” mutters Kili, seeming ashamed.<br/>“No you didn’t. You know nothing of the world,” scolds Thorin.<br/>He walks to a ledge to look around, turning his back to the group.<br/>“Don’t mind him, laddie. Thorin has more cause than most to hate orcs,” says Balin.<br/>“I can understand the hatred of those monsters,” murmurs Kat, making her way over to Bilbo.<br/>“After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient dwarf kingdom of Moria. But our enemy had got there first. Moria had been taken by legions of orcs, led by the most vile of all their race, Azog the Defiler,” explains Balin, the name sending ice through Kat’s veins. “The giant Gundabad orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began by beheading the king. Thrain, Thorin’s father, was driven mad by grief, he went missing, taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us. That is when I saw him. A young dwarf prince facing down the Pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe. His armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield. Azog the Defiler learned that day, that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Or forces rallied, and drove the orcs back. Our enemy had been defeated, but there was no feast, nor song that night for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few, had survived. And I thought to myself then, there is one who I could follow, there is one I could call king.”<br/>Thorin turns back to find all of the dwarves have risen and are looking at him with respect. Bilbo looks at him with awe, while Kat looks at him with something akin to understanding.<br/>“And the Pale Orc? What happened to him,” questions Bilbo.<br/>“He slunk back into the hole whence he came. That filth died of his wounds long ago,” grumbles Thorin.<br/>As everyone settles down to sleep once again, Kat keeps her sword close and stays by her brother just in case he would need protection. Besides, she knows the dreams are going to keep her up for most of the night anyways.</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. A Story Of Orcs And Wargs</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>TW: Gore mentions</p><p>This is the dress I was trying to describe: https://www.etsy.com/listing/661422380/elven-bridal-gown-cape?ref=search_srv-3<br/>And the fifth picture down is the hairstyle I was describing: https://mymodernmet.com/milena-braid-hairstyles/</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next day of their journey is tedious as the party rides the horses through torrential rain and biting cold. As the rain matts Kat’s hair to her face, she grows more irritable. Much like the feline she was named after, Kat isn’t a fan of water.<br/>	“Here, Mr. Gandalf? Can’t you do something about this deluge,” calls Dori.<br/>	“It is raining, master dwarf. And it will continue to rain until the rain is done! If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another wizard,” responds Gandalf.<br/>	“Are there any,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	“What,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	“Other wizards,” Kat clarifies.<br/>	“There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman, The White. Then there are the two blue wizards. Do you know, I’ve quite forgotten their names,” Gandalf trails off.<br/>	“And who is the fifth,” questions Bilbo.<br/>	“Well, that would be Radagast, The Brown,” answers Gandalf.<br/>	“Is he a great wizard or is he… more like you,” Bilbo continues.<br/>	Kat quietly snorts into her hand, covering it with a cough in an attempt to hide it.<br/>	“I think he’s a very great wizard, in his own way. He’s a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others, similarly to Kat. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forestlands to the east, and a good thing too, for always evil will look to find a foothold in this world,” explains Gandalf.<br/>	The day continues much like this, with Kat bantering back and forth with the princes, signing to Bifur, and giving Bofur grief. The rain eventually stops and Balin continues her history lesson for a while before Thorin calls for the company to stop outside the ruins of an old farmhouse.<br/>	“We’ll camp here for the night. Fili, Kili, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them,” he instructs.<br/>	“A farmer and his family used to live here,” mutters Gandalf.<br/>	As Thorin continues to give out orders, Kat joins Bombur by the fire being built to help him get their dinner ready. While preparing the ingredients, she and Bombur talk about his family and life back at his home.<br/>	“Fourteen children!? You’re growing your own little army,” she exclaims.<br/>	“They act like it too. You should try watching them,” jokes Bofur.<br/>	“To each their own. I think it’s wonderful that you and your wife are so happy together,” she says.<br/>	“Thank you. She’s wonderful, so kind and beautiful and-” rambles Bombur.<br/>	He’s interrupted by Gandalf storming away from Thorin, anger clear on his face. Gandalf stalks over to his horse, seeming ready to leave.<br/>	“Everything alright? Gandalf, where are you going,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	“To seek the company of the only one around here who’s got any sense,” huffs Gandalf.<br/>	“And who’s that,” wonders Bilbo.<br/>	“Myself, mister Baggins! I’ve had enough of dwarves for one day,” snaps Gandalf.<br/>	As Gandalf rides off, Thorin stomps back toward their group. Whatever they were speaking about had obviously upset the both of them.<br/>	“Is everything alright,” Kat asks hesitantly.<br/>	“Come on, we’re hungry,” Thorin snaps at the two of them.<br/>	“Yes sir,” sighs Kat.<br/>	The night progresses and camp gets set up quickly. It’s quiet without the two princes, and Kat begins to wonder how they’re fairing alone out there. She and Bombur finish dinner quickly and begin to divide it out between the group.<br/>	“He’s been a long time,” says Bilbo.<br/>	“Who,” asks Bofur.<br/>	“He’s talking about Gandalf,” answers Kat.<br/>	“He’s a wizard! He does as he chooses. Here. Do us a favor, take this to the lads,” suggests Bofur.<br/>	He hands two bowls to Bilbo and turns to argue with Bombur for taking more food. Kat laughs and looks at Bifur, who begins signing rapidly to her and telling her stories about how Bombur would always steal more than his fair share of food. While laughing at the stories, she responds by signing back some stories of her own about how she and Bilbo would steal cookies and candy when they were little while the adults weren’t looking.<br/>	“I would always get us into trouble by sneaking into Mr. Lightfoot’s garden and stealing his fruits and vegetables. The amount of times I had to run from him turned me into a natural sprinter,” she signs.<br/>	Bifur laughs loudly which causes Kat to laugh, covering her mouth with her hand as she does so.<br/>	“You shouldn’t cover such a pretty smile lass. I may not know what you two are saying, but I do know that I’m happy hearing that melody of a laugh,” flirts Bofur jokingly.<br/>	“Aye, you’re too serious. Keep that up and you’ll turn into another Thorin,” jokes Dwalin.<br/>	Kat blushes and brushes her still damp hair behind her ear, looking down at the bowl on her lap. Glancing back up, she sees Thorin looking at her before he quickly turns away, attention being drawn to the two princes sprinting back to the camp. Kat quickly gets up upon realizing that Bilbo isn’t with them, grabbing her sword out of habit.<br/>	“Where’s Bilbo? He went to bring you dinner,” she questions.<br/>	“Trolls. They took two of the ponies and Bilbo went to get them back,” rushes Fili.<br/>	Everyone bursts into action, grabbing their various weapons and following the two as they rush back toward where they had left Bilbo. There was no need to be quiet, as the trolls were being loud enough to drown out any noise the group made. Kili runs ahead of everyone else as Kat listens to the trolls questioning and threatening her brother. Before anyone can do anything, Kili strikes his sword against the leg of one of the trolls, causing the troll to cry out and flinch away.<br/>	“Drop him,” yells Kili.<br/>	“You what,” questions a second troll.<br/>	“I said, drop him,” Kili repeats sternly.<br/>	The troll tosses Bilbo at Kili, who promptly catches him, but both of them fall to the ground from the force. Thorin motions for the group to charge and the battle quickly begins. Kat soon recognizes how slow and clumsy the trolls are and how quickly she can move. Drawing her sword, she looks around for the closest dwarf.<br/>	“Dwalin, give me a lift,” she yells.<br/>	Dwalin barely has time to turn and grab her before they collide, him throwing her up into the air with as much force as possible. She flies straight toward the back of one of the trolls and uses her sword as an anchor, stabbing the troll between the shoulder blades and sliding down as it slices through him. The troll begins to thrash around, trying to remove Kat from his back as the dwarves below dodge his feet. Using her feet for better leverage, Kat pulls the sword free from the troll and flies through the air.<br/>	For a moment, she thinks she’s going to land with minimal damage in the bush she was flying toward. Unfortunately, the moment the thought crosses her mind, she collides with the back of another troll’s hand which sends her in the opposite direction of the safe landing she had planned. As she gasps for the breath that had been knocked from her lungs, she hits something hard and solid, causing a stab of pain in her head. A pathetic sound escapes from her, a sound that would have been a scream had she been able to breathe. Black spots swim around in her vision as she slowly rolls onto her back, seeing the offending tree she had hit.<br/>	“Bilbo,” yells Kili.<br/>	The following conversation sounds like Kat’s listening from underwater. She can’t see what’s going on through the bushes surrounding her, and she can barely move without her head swimming. She can’t be sure of how much time passes as she faintly listens to Bilbo and the trolls talking, before a face appears above her. Gandalf? Hadn’t he left?<br/>	“Lie still. I’ll be back,” he murmurs.<br/>	He leaves her sight and it’s quiet for a moment. Suddenly, she can hear Gandalf shouting and a flash of light can be seen. The trolls yell in panic for a moment before it goes quiet, save for the sound of the dwarves cheering. Kat hears them moving around as they free themselves from whatever the trolls had done and sees the bushes around her move. She sees Thorin’s face above her as he picks her up and carries her to the clearing where the others were.<br/>	“Kat,” cries Bilbo as he runs toward her.<br/>	“I’m alright. I just hit my head a little too hard, that’s all. Just give me a moment,” mutters Kat.<br/>	She slowly sits up and brings a hand to her temple, feeling the sticky sensation of partially dried blood caked to the side of her face. Scrunching up her nose slightly at the feeling, she stretches her neck and rolls her shoulders to loosen her bruised muscles.<br/>	“Note to self, perfect landing before jumping off a troll again,” she groans.<br/>	A few of the dwarves laugh slightly as Oin steps forward to check her wounds. He fusses over her for a little while, during which time Thorin and Gandalf bicker back and forth. It’s decided that the trolls must have a cave somewhere nearby, which the dwarves are very enthusiastic about.<br/>	“Can she walk,” asks Thorin.<br/>	“She can walk. She just needs to watch out for any nausea or dizziness,” answers Oin.<br/>	“I’m sitting right here you know,” grumbles Kat.<br/>	Bifur and Bofur help her to the cave despite her protests, where she decides to wait outside. The smell emanating from inside the cave makes her stomach churn and the thought of immersing herself in that stench causes her to think that staying with the live trolls would have been better.<br/>	“Are you sure you’re not going to look through the treasure lass,” asks Dwalin.<br/>	“I’m sure. Someone just bring me back something pretty,” she jokes.<br/>	A few of the dwarves end up burying some of the treasure so they can return later to get it. As they exit the cave, Kat sees Gandalf give Bilbo a small sword, causing her to smile. Her brother may become an adventurer yet. Twigs and branches snapping nearby causes her to whip her head around, tensing in anticipation of whatever threat may be coming.<br/>	“Something’s coming,” shouts Thorin.<br/>	“Stay together! Hurry, now! Arm yourselves,” orders Gandalf.<br/>	Bofur and Bifur pull Kat and Bilbo into the center of a protective circle of dwarves, shielding them from the danger. Suddenly, a sled pulled by rabbits bursts into the clearing with an older man riding on the sled.<br/>	“Thieves! Fire! Murder,” shouts the man.<br/>	“Radagast. It’s Radagast the Brown,” announces Gandalf, stowing his sword and walking toward him. “What on earth are you doing here?”<br/>	“I was looking for you, Gandalf. Something’s wrong. Something’s terribly wrong,” replies Radagast.<br/>	Kat slowly walks toward the man and his sled while the two wizards talk, not getting far from the others. The rabbits, seeming to sense her intrigue, pull toward her. The closest one to her knocks her down and begins to sniff at her, causing her to laugh.<br/>	“Hello there. How sweet are you,” she coos.<br/>	“Oh, they seem to like you,” compliments Radagast.<br/>	“They’re lovely,” she laughs.<br/>	“My sister and her animals,” sighs Bilbo.<br/>	As Radagast explains to Gandalf the sickness spreading through Greenwood, Kat continues to sit and love on the rabbits. At the mention of spiders, she shudders slightly and pulls one of the rabbits closer, looking away from the two wizards. Fili and Kili chuckle at her from their spot next to Thorin, causing him to look over at her as well. Luckily, the rabbits are big enough to hide her from his gaze. A sudden howling comes from nearby, causing Kat to jump up and reach for her bow.<br/>	“Was that a wolf? Are there-are there wolves out there,” stammers Bilbo.<br/>	“That’s no wolf Bilbo,” answers Kat lowly.<br/>	Suddenly, something growls from behind them and everyone turns to see a warg scout standing on a rock. Kat pulls Bilbo behind her while Thorin and Kili go after the two, killing them quickly.<br/>	“Warg scouts! Which means an orc pack is not far behind,” states Thorin.<br/>	“Orc pack,” squeaks Bilbo.<br/>	“Who did you tell about your quest, beyond your kin,” questions Gandalf.<br/>	“No one,” replies Thorin.<br/>	“Who did you tell,” Gandalf shouts.<br/>	“No one, I swear! What in Durin’s name is going on,” questions Thorin.<br/>	“You are being hunted. Kat, did you tell Ciarán why you wouldn’t be back,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	“No sir. I just told him I was traveling, I didn’t even mention the dwarves,” Kat answers quickly.<br/>	“We have to get out of here,” says Dwalin.<br/>	“We can’t! We have no ponies. They bolted after the trolls attacked,” cries Ori.<br/>	“I’ll draw them off,” suggests Radagast.<br/>	“These are Gundabad wargs. They will outrun you,” argues Gandalf.<br/>	“These are Rhosgobel rabbits. I’d like to see them try,” Radagast counters.<br/>	Radagast takes off in his sled as the group quietly makes their way farther from the orcs. They follow Gandalf as he runs between boulders and other natural hiding places.<br/>	“Stay together,” he instructs.<br/>	“Move,” commands Thorin.<br/>	They hurry along, trying to hide and keep away from the orcs, when they cut their group off once again. This forces everyone to stop quickly behind a rock, but Ori continues running, almost passing the edge before Thorin pulls him back.<br/>	“All of you, come on, come on! Quick,” orders Gandalf.<br/>	“Where are you leading us,” questions Thorin.<br/>	Instead of answering, Gandalf moves on ahead. One of the orcs chasing after Radagast comes to investigate, standing right above them. Thorin indicates to Kili, who in turn uses his bow to take the orc and his warg down, after which the others use their swords to silence the fallen orc. Unfortunately, the other orcs hear the squealing of the dying orc and begin racing toward the dwarves.<br/>	“Move! Run,” shouts Gandalf.<br/>	As everyone begins running, Gandalf disappears somewhere along a large rock face. Using her bow, Kat joins Kili and begins shooting down as many of the orcs as they can. Some of the dwarves begin shouting for Gandalf, but he remains unseen. Turning to the side, Kat catches a glimpse of a warg sneaking up behind Fili.<br/>	“Fili,” she shouts.<br/>	Moving quicker than she thought possible, she shoves him out of the way right before a searing pain erupts across her right side. She knows she screams from the pain, but her ears are ringing too loud to be able to hear it. As she lands on her stomach, a weight presses on her from behind and she feels something cut into her back, drawing a pained squeak from her due to the absence of air in her lungs. She hears a yelp and the weight leaves, replaced by a burning pain and the feeling of blood dripping down her back.<br/>	Someone picks her up and she feels herself slide down somewhere into darkness. A horn can be heard from above ground, though she’s hardly paying attention at this point. Oin bustles about over her, poking at her wounds as she bites down on her lip to keep from screaming and giving away their location. It’s soon discovered that elves were responsible for the sounds of dying orcs above them when an orc topples down the tunnel with an arrow embedded in it.<br/>	“We need to move. Hand me my pack,” gasps Kat.<br/>	Bilbo hurries to hand it to her and she pulls out a large bandage. Ignoring Oin’s protests, she wraps it tightly around her torso, hissing slightly at the pain.<br/>	“This will keep my bleeding at bay for a little while. Long enough to get us to safety,” she explains tensely.<br/>	“You can’t walk around with wounds like that,” argues Bilbo.<br/>	“I’ve done much more with much worse, I’ll be alright. But wargs are good at smelling blood and they’ve got quite the scent with me. Trust me, I can handle it,” she argues.<br/>	“I cannot see where the pathway leads. Do we follow it or not,” calls Dwalin.<br/>	“We follow it, of course,” answers Kat.<br/>	“I think that would be wise,” suggests Gandalf.<br/>	Following the path inside of the tunnel, Kat struggles to keep up as the pathway gets narrower. Thorin catches her as she trips, glancing at her with concern. Before he can say anything, the tunnel opens up to a stunning view of Rivendell, causing Thorin to tense.<br/>	“The Valley of Imladris. In the common tongue, it’s known by another name,” announces Gandalf.<br/>	“Rivendell,” murmurs Bilbo.<br/>	“Here lies the last homely house, east of the sea,” continues Gandalf.<br/>	“This was your plan all along, to seek refuge with our enemy,” growls Thorin.<br/>	“You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill-will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself,” Gandalf corrects.<br/>	“You think the elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us,” argues Thorin.<br/>	“Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered and a hobbit who is in need of healing,” counters Gandalf, causing everyone to look at Kat being held up by Thorin. “If we are to be successful this will need to be handled with tact, and respect, and no small degree of charm, which is why you will leave the talking to me.”<br/>	As they make their way toward Rivendell, Kat begins to get concerned at her state. It was much worse than she had previously thought, feeling her legs begin to weaken and her body begin to grow cold. She’s losing too much blood, but what were they to do until they reached the city? The company walks across a bridge and finally enters Rivendell. A few elves are strolling about, to which the dwarves glare at them in unease, and a dark haired elf walks down a flight of stairs. Kat is shifted into the middle of the group, assisted by Fili and Kili as Thorin stands up front.<br/>	“Mithrandir,” he greets.<br/>	“Ah, Lindir,” responds Gandalf.<br/>	“Stay sharp,” Thorin whispers to Dwalin.<br/>	“Lastannem i athrannedh i Vruinen,” states Lindir. (We heard you had crossed into the Valley.)<br/>	Despite the pain radiating through her body, Kat smiles as she realizes she can understand what he had said. Her elvish lessons had paid off after all!<br/>	“I must speak with Lord Elrond,” announces Gandalf.<br/>	“My lord Elrond is not here,” responds Lindir.<br/>	“Not here? Where is he,” questions Gandalf.<br/>	Suddenly, the horns from earlier ring out again. The company turns around and sees a group of armed horsemen approaching along the bridge at a rapid pace.<br/>	“Ifridî bekâr! Hold ranks,” orders Thorin. (Ready weapons!)<br/>	The dwarves bunch up together into a tight circle with their weapons pointed outward, shielding Bilbo and Kat in the center. The mounted elves are quick to arrive and begin circling the dwarves. Eventually, they stop, and one elf separates himself from the others. Kat can only assume this must be Elrond, judging by the way the others seem to look at him. Her assumption is only further proven when Gandalf bows gracefully to him.<br/>	“Gandalf,” he greets.<br/>	“Lord Elrond. Mellonnen! Mo evínedh,” Gandalf asks. (My friend! Where have you been?)<br/>	“Farannem ‘lamhoth i udul o charad. Dagannem rim na lant Vedui,” answers Elrond. (We’ve been hunting a pack of orcs that came up from the south. We slew a number near the Hidden Pass.)<br/>	Elrond dismounts his horse and he and Gandalf hug.<br/>	“Strange for orcs to come so close to our borders. Something, or someone, has drawn them near,” states Elrond, holding up an orc sword before handing it to Lindir.<br/>	“Ah, that may have been us,” says Gandalf guiltily.<br/>	Kat sways slightly on her feet, only being held up by Fili’s tight grip. Thorin steps forward from the group and Elrond looks at him with recognition.<br/>	“Welcome Thorin, son of Thrain,” greets Elrond.<br/>	“I do not believe we have met,” states Thorin.<br/>	“You have your grandfather’s bearing. I knew Thror when he ruled under the mountain,” explains Elrond.<br/>	“Indeed; he made no mention of you,” insults Thorin.<br/>	Elrond ignores the insult and turns to the rest of the company.<br/>	“Nartho i noer, toltho i viruvor. Boe i annam vann a nethail vin,” he announces. (Light the fires, bring forth the wine. We must feed our guests.)<br/>	“What is he saying? Does he offer us insult,” cries Gloin, causing the other dwarves to grip their weapons uneasily.<br/>	“He’s offering us food, Gloin. As Gandalf said, we are not in danger here,” translates Kat.<br/>	She pulls herself from Fili’s grip and staggers to the front of the group. Pushing past Thorin’s arm as he tries to keep her back, she approaches Elrond and bows her head.<br/>	“I would bow, but I’m not sure I would stay upright. I appreciate your hospitality my lord, but I was wondering if you had any healers,” she gasps.<br/>	Elrond’s eyes widen slightly as he reaches a hand out to steady her, drawing more uneasy sounds from the dwarves behind her.<br/>	“Absolutely. Lindir, please help this young lady to the healers immediately,” instructs Elrond.<br/>	“She will not be separated from the group,” states Thorin.<br/>	“Thorin, I need to see a healer and I’d rather not undress myself in front of thirteen dwarves and my brother,” sighs Kat. “I promise I will be alright. I’m sure I’ll be able to see you once the meal is set up.”<br/>	While they don’t look happy about the decision, the dwarves let her be led away without too much fuss. Once they are out of sight, Lindir lifts her off the ground and carries her the rest of the way to the healers.<br/>	The healers work quickly, mixing different herbs and speaking in their language which Kat doesn’t have the energy to translate. Her pain is soon eased, the wounds being stitched together by the magic of the elves. She would ask how the process works, but she knows she wouldn’t be able to understand any of it. They help her bathe before bandaging her once again.<br/>	Once she is able to stand again, she looks around for her pack with the extra tunic in it before remembering Bilbo had taken it when she was injured. The bandages wrapped around her torso weren’t enough to cover her completely, meaning she couldn’t leave the room to get her spare tunic. Suddenly, her eyes fall on a dress in the corner. It seems to have been made for a child, yet it was still slightly too tall for her. It was made of beautiful ombre silk charmeuse with a sweetheart neckline, a panel of silk crossing over the chest. The olive green silk gently fades to sage green toward the center of the gown where a beaded lace frames the chest panel. Inside, there is a foundation of spiral steel boning, is fully lined, and has a sewn-in modesty panel. Delicate lace and beaded details extend over the edges. Next to it sits a cape of more ombre silk chiffon that attaches to a lace beaded collar that elegantly drapes over the arms and back. Upon closer inspection, she sees it clasps at the neck with a gem-encrusted clasp. Overall, it was absolutely stunning. Gently, she pulls the dress over her torso and can’t help the smile that comes to her face at the sight of such a beautiful gown on her. <br/>	“You look wonderful. The green suits you,” compliments a gentle voice from behind her.<br/>	Turning, Kat sees an elf maiden standing by the door, smiling down at her.<br/>	“Thank you. It’s lovely,” says Kat.<br/>	“May I help with your hair? I have a wonderful braided hairstyle that would look lovely with that gown,” offers the elf.<br/>	Nodding, Kat sits on the bed she had been laying on before as the woman begins brushing and braiding her hair. They continue in silence like this for a few more moments before Kat’s curiosity becomes too much.<br/>	“I don’t believe I got your name. My name is Kat,” she offers.<br/>	“I am Elva,” greets the elf.<br/>	“That’s a beautiful name. Does it mean anything in particular,” asks Kat.<br/>	“It means ‘a friend.’” explains Elva.<br/>	As they continue talking about various aspects of elven culture, Elva adds braids and twists into Kat’s long hair. Honestly, Kat had never had her hair done in such an intricate way before, always being too impatient to tame her wild curls. Elva seems to have no trouble running her delicate fingers through Kat’s hair, showing grace even in these simple actions.<br/>	The finished style is breathtaking. Her hair is woven much like one would weave a basket, with shapes resembling flowers sitting on top of it in the center. One braid goes down the center of her back with strands pulled out to create two circular shapes with smaller circles inside. On both sides of the center lies two more braids.<br/>	“This is amazing! Thank you,” gasps Kat.<br/>	“Let me lead you to your friends. They are very eager for your return,” says Elva.<br/>	She leads Kat to a court where the dwarves are sitting around two tables. Most of them are sitting at one long table, while Thorin, Bilbo, Gandalf and Elrond sit at a smaller table off to the side. As she enters, everyone looks over at her and goes quiet, and even Bilbo seems slightly stunned. She awkwardly pushes her hair behind her ear and looks down at her feet.<br/>	“You look beautiful. We’ve never seen you in a dress before,” signs Bifur, causing her face to turn red.<br/>	“Thank you. I don’t typically wear dresses very often if I can help it,” Kat responds out loud.<br/>	Her voice seems to break the others from their daze and Fili and Kili rush to her side, leading her to a chair between Fili and Bofur. As she passes the other table, she smiles at Elrond and Thorin, and waves at Bilbo.<br/>	“I tugon'h joon chea fouk u xkojj jinyo quehtok xiox,” states Bilbo. (I haven't seen you wear a dress since mother died.)<br/>	Kat laughs a bit and scratches the back of her head awkwardly. Her mother had been the only reason she ever wore dresses, saying that she had to act more like a proper lady.<br/>	“I woop piro ogokcheno ij jhukinv uh quo,” she murmurs. (I feel like everyone is staring at me.)<br/>	“Htoch uko, zah neh in u zux fuch. Chea peer piro u yequmpohopch xiwwokonh mokjen. I htinr htekin ogon juix jequohtinv in xfukwijt fton chea fuprox in,” teases Bilbo. (They are, but not in a bad way. You look like a completely different person. I think Thorin even said something in dwarfish when you walked in.)<br/>	“To yeapx tugo zoon injaphinv quo wek upp chea rnef,” she blushes. (He could have been insulting me for all you know.)<br/>	“I highly doubt that,” laughs Bilbo.<br/>	Rolling her eyes at him, she turns to sit at her designated chair. A plate of vegetables is sitting in front of her and she notices how apprehensive the dwarves are acting toward the green food. Some of them grumble, asking where the meat is and if the elves have any chips, causing Kat to laugh.<br/>	“They’re vegetables, not poison. Truly they’re not that bad,” she chides.<br/>	“Maybe not to you, but warriors like us need meat,” teases Bofur.<br/>	“Some warriors you are, frightened by a few vegetables,” she laughs.<br/>	Her eyes catch sight of an elf playing the harp, causing her to smile gently. Others play flutes and various other instruments, causing Oin to stuff a napkin in his hearing trumpet. He must not like the music.<br/>	“I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the harp. It looks enchanting. I only know how to play the viol,” announces Kat.<br/>	“Maybe you should ask Uncle Thorin. He knows how to play the harp,” offers Fili.<br/>	“He does? That’s interesting,” murmurs Kat, glancing over at Thorin.<br/>	As the meal progresses, she begins to loosen up a bit, no longer as concerned about her attire. She laughs along with the others as Kili mistakes a male elf for a maiden. Stories fly and the mood is lightened. After a while, Kat begins to feel uncomfortable in her gown, feeling confined in the bodice and bandages. Excusing herself, she approaches the table where Elrond is sitting.<br/>	“I see Elva did your hair. You look lovely. How are you feeling,” asks Elrond.<br/>	“Much better, thank you. Your healers are wonderful. I was wondering if there might be a place I can change? Not that I don’t appreciate the beautiful gown, I’m just unused to wearing dresses,” she rambles.<br/>	Elrond smiles kindly at her and motions two dark haired elves in their direction. Upon closer inspection, Kat sees similarities in the two and Elrond.<br/>	“These are my sons, Elladan and Elrohir. They will show you to a room,” instructs Elrond as his sons bow at Kat.<br/>	“Saesa omentien lle,” greets Kat. (Pleasure meeting you.)<br/>	The two look at her in surprise, glancing at their father curiously.<br/>	“Quena i’lambe tel’ Eldalie,” asks Elladan. (You speak elvish?)<br/>	“Not much. I’ve never had the opportunity to have a conversation, but I can understand it decently,” she answers.<br/>	“Well, perhaps we can teach you a bit while we show you around,” offers Elrohir.<br/>	“You should take one of the others with you. Perhaps Fili or Kili,” states Thorin.<br/>	Looking over at him, he appears tense and a bit cross, though he typically looks like that. His sudden concern with her being around the elves confuses her slightly and she tilts her head a bit, but ultimately decides to do as he says.<br/>	“Fili and Kili seem content here, but I suppose I could ask Bifur if he would come with me. Would that be alright,” she asks.<br/>	Thorin consents and she goes to ask Bifur to come with her. Grabbing her pack, the two of them follow behind Elladan and Elrohir as they lead them through the halls.<br/>	“Does he not trust me? Is that why he refuses to let me go off on my own,” she asks Bifur.<br/>	“He doesn’t trust elves and doesn’t want a member of our company to be alone with those he doesn’t trust,” signs Bifur.<br/>	“I understand that, but I can take care of myself. All that happened last time was that I got my hair done,” she sighs.<br/>	“And what a surprise that was. Thorin may have been the most shocked out of all of us, judging by his reaction,” Bifur laughs.<br/>	“Bilbo made the same joke! Did I miss something while I was with the healers,” she asks.<br/>	“Did you hear what he said?”<br/>	“No. Even if I did, I don’t speak Khuzdul.”<br/>	“Sasakhabiya abnâmul.”<br/>	“What does that mean?”<br/>	“It means ‘you look beautiful.’ I don’t think he meant to say it aloud.”<br/>	Before Kat can respond, Elladan and Elrohir come to a stop in front of a door. She steps inside and fights her way out of the gown. Once feeling comfortable in her loose fitting tunic finally, she straps on her daggers and steps out of the room. The trip back to the company seems shorter than the trip away, and she can hear the ruckus the dwarves are causing from down the hall. Reaching the doorway, she can see everyone is in the room and a few of the dwarves relax when they see them walk in.<br/>	“Thank you for showing me the way,” she thanks the two elves.<br/>	“Of course. Come find us if you would like to see more,” offers Elladan.<br/>	They each take one of her hands and kisses the back of it, causing her to laugh a bit.<br/>	“I’ll keep that in mind. Maybe you can give me those lessons you mentioned,” she teases.<br/>	“With the look your leader is giving us, I think it might be a good idea to leave you to the dwarves,” laughs Elrohir quietly.<br/>	Kat turns to look and sees Thorin giving the two a cross look. Bidding her a goodbye, they leave her to the mercy of the dwarves. She walks over to Fili and Kili, waving at Bilbo as she passes him. Their little party continues for a little longer before Thorin calls for everyone to get some rest. Laying down somewhere between the two princes and Bifur, she falls asleep to the now familiar sound of snores.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Goblins, Orcs, And Wargs, Oh My!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>TW: Gore and mentions of rape</p><p>I likely won't be able to post this weekend because I have DnD, so I decided to post another chapter to give everyone something to read! I hope you all like it so far, and feel free to send any constructive criticism.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Thorin wakes everyone up extremely early the next morning, much to Kat’s dismay. The group is quickly ushered out of Rivendell while Kat is still rubbing sleep from her eyes. Hiking along the path away from the city, Fili and Kili tease her about her sluggish state while Bilbo explains that she had never been much of a morning person.<br/>	“Be on your guard; we’re about to step over the edge of the wild. Balin, you know these paths, lead on,” announces Thorin.<br/>	Kat notices Bilbo looking back at Rivendell longingly and she stops, putting a hand on his shoulder. After the paradise that they just left, following this path to nowhere is going to be difficult for him.<br/>	“Master Baggins, I suggest you keep up,” states Thorin.<br/>	“You can stay if you want Bilbo,” offers Kat quietly.<br/>	He shakes his head and turns back to the group, continuing their trek. Their day is filled with hiking through the wilderness, over ranges, mountains, and plains. As they cross the Misty Mountains, the trail becomes narrow and dangerous, with a cliff on one side and a sheer drop on the other. A fierce storm rages around them, with lightning and rain all around. Kat finds it harder and harder to continue the journey, her remaining wounds pulling and stinging. Suddenly, a stone beneath Bilbo’s feet gives away, and he starts falling into the chasm. Kat screams his name and Dwalin manages to pull him back in time.<br/>	“We must find shelter,” yells Thorin.<br/>	“Watch out,” cries Dwalin.<br/>	Everyone looks up and sees a massive boulder hurtling through the air. It hits the mountainside above them, causing rocks to fall all around them. Kili presses Kat against the mountain, shielding her from the rocks with his body.<br/>	“This is no thunderstorm; it’s a thunder battle! Look,” yells Balin.<br/>	Kat peaks around Kili and sees a stone giant rear up from a nearby mountain, causing her eyes to widen. It rips off a massive boulder from the top of the mountain, showcasing its strength.<br/>	“Well bless me, the legends are true. Giants! Stone giants,” states Bofur.<br/>	“Take cover, you’ll fall,” shouts Thorin.<br/>	The giant throws the boulder far into the air and another stone giant appears from behind the company. The boulder hits the second giant in the head, causing the dwarves to yell at each other to brace and hold on. Kili again braces Kat against the mountain, helping to keep her from sliding off as the rocks beneath their feet begin to give way from all the vibrations and the impact of the falling rocks. The ground between the company splits with part of the group on one side and part on the other.<br/>	“Kili! Grab my hand! Kili,” screams Fili.<br/>	As the stone giants fight with their fists, everyone holds on tight as they’re flung around. Kat nearly slips off a few times before Kili anchors her back to their perch on the leg of a giant. She can see the other half of their group jump to a different, safer spot on the mountain, causing her to give a slight sigh of relief. That sigh is cut short when a third stone giant appears, throwing a boulder at the head of the one they currently stood on, causing their giant to topple over. They are thrown off of the giant and onto the ledge of the mountain. Kat begins slipping, screaming and scrambling at the wet stone fruitlessly. Kili lunges at her and grabs her by the arm as she dangles over the chasm, buffeted about by the wind and rain. As he pulls her back up, she sees the other group rushing toward them, Thorin heading straight toward Kili.<br/>	“We’re alright! We’re alive,” announces Balin.<br/>	“Where’s Bilbo? Where’s the hobbit,” yells Bofur.<br/>	Kat spins around, frantically looking for her brother.<br/>	“Bilbo,” she screams.<br/>	“There,” cries Ori.<br/>	“Get him,” yells Dwalin.<br/>	Kat finally sees Bilbo hanging onto the edge of the cliff by his fingertips, causing her blood to turn to ice. She can’t lose him. He’s the only family she has left. Ori dives onto the ground and tries to grab Bilbo’s arm, but Bilbo slips and falls another few feet before catching another handhold. As the dwarves try to pull him up unsuccessfully, Thorin swings down on the cliff next to Bilbo and boosts him up, where the others pull him to safety. Dwalin tries to lift Thorin back up as well, but Thorin loses his grip and begins falling too. Luckily, Dwalin is able to pull him back up with much effort, causing Kat to let out a relieved sigh.<br/>	“I thought we’d lost our burglar,” states Dwalin.<br/>	“He’s been lost ever since he left home. He should never have come. He has no place amongst us,” snaps Thorin.<br/>	Kat glares heatedly at him, grabbing Bilbo’s hand in her own.<br/>	“You, Thorin Oakenshield, are an ass! It could have been anyone who fell over the side. If it had been Fili or Kili, would you claim they had no place here? Because of an accident? Because of something they had absolutely no control over? No! You would never say that to them! Everyone starts somewhere with learning how to travel the wild, and everyone messes up that first time. We don’t have to help you! We could have easily said that this wasn’t our problem, but we dropped everything to make sure you have a home to return to! The least you could do is not treat us like shit,” she rants.<br/>	The others stare at her in stunned silence while she and Thorin glare at one another. Her face is burning and she knows she must be as red as her hair right now, but she holds his gaze strongly.<br/>	“Dwalin, come with me,” growls Thorin.<br/>	The two turn and walk ahead, likely searching for a cave or safe place to wait out the storm. Kat turns to Bilbo, fussing over him for a moment as she ensures he’s unharmed from his fall. The group follows Thorin and Dwalin, seeing that they had found a cave and were searching it.<br/>	“There’s nothing here,” announces Dwalin.<br/>	Gloin drops a bundle of wood on the floor and rubs his hands.<br/>	“Right then! Let’s get a fire started,” he states.<br/>	“No, no fires, not in this place. Get some sleep. We start at first light,” instructs Thorin.<br/>	“We were to wait in the mountains until Gandalf joined us. That was the plan,” reminds Balin.<br/>	“Plans change. Bofur, take the first watch,” responds Thorin.<br/>	As they all settle down, Kat sits near Bofur and Bifur, rubbing her torso slightly from the twinges of pain.<br/>	“Are you alright lass? You didn’t get hurt, did you,” asks Bofur.<br/>	“I’m fine. Just a little sore, nothing I can’t handle,” she says.<br/>	“Are you sure? You blew up a little back there,” he prompts.<br/>	Glancing at Bilbo lying nearby, she sighs and hugs her knees to her chest, leaning her head on them.<br/>	“I may be younger than him, but I’ve always been the one to fight for him. Ever since we were little, he would get picked on and teased for how odd we were. After we grew up, he became a stand up member of hobbit society, while I stayed… well, me. I can’t stand hearing people belittle him, especially when he has such a kind heart,” she explains.<br/>	Shaking her head, she reaches up behind her to undo the elvish braids still in her hair. The rain and wind had tangled her hair more than usual, and the elaborate style of the braids cause her fingers to fumble around uselessly. Tears of frustration sting in her eyes which only makes her more irritated, hating the thought of crying in front of anyone.<br/>	“Come here lass. Let me help,” offers Bofur with a chuckle.<br/>	“Isn’t touching someone’s hair a big thing in your culture though, reserved for family and those who are courting,” she asks.<br/>	“You might as well be family at this point. Bombur has already decided to introduce you to his family, you and Bifur have your own language so you can speak to him, and I don’t think I’ve been as protective toward someone since we were all little. Face it lass, you’re part of our little family now,” explains Bofur.<br/>	Smiling, she turns so he can help untangle her hair. He works quickly and with surprising delicacy, unweaving her mass of wet hair easily. He even helps her brush it out and encourages her to leave it down as she sleeps so it will dry faster.<br/>	Movement catches her eye and she turns to see Bilbo rolling up his blankets and packing his things. Her heart drops a bit as she watches him, knowing he was going back to Rivendell after all. Grabbing his walking stick, he starts to leave the cave, tiptoeing over the sleeping dwarves, when Bofur finally sees him. He stands to try to stop Bilbo from leaving as Kat once again hugs her knees to her chest, knowing she couldn’t just abandon the dwarves.<br/>	“Where do you think you’re going,” whispers Bofur.<br/>	“Back to Rivendell,” murmurs Kat, causing Bilbo to look down at her sadly.<br/>	“No, no, you can’t turn back now, you’re part of the company. You’re one of us,” argues Bofur.<br/>	“I’m not though, am I? Thorin said I should never have come, and he was right. I’m not a Took, I’m a Baggins, I don’t know what I was thinking. I should never have run out my door. Kat, she belongs here, but I don’t,” says Bilbo.<br/>	“You’re homesick; I understand,” sympathizes Bofur.<br/>	“No, you don’t, you don’t understand. None of you do, you’re dwarves. You’re used to this life, to living on the road, never settling in one place, not belonging anywhere,” states Bilbo.<br/>	“Bilbo,” snaps Kat.<br/>	Bofur looks offended and Bilbo looks between him and Kat, immediately regretting his words.<br/>	“I am sorry, I didn’t-” apologizes Bilbo.<br/>	“No, you’re right. We don’t belong anywhere. I wish you all the luck in the world. I really do,” interrupts Bofur.<br/>	Bofur smiles and places his hand on Bilbo’s shoulder before Bilbo turns and begins to walk away. Something catches Kat’s eye as she glances down at the sword hanging on Bilbo’s waist.<br/>	“What’s that,” asks Bofur, seeing it as well.<br/>	Bilbo pulls his sword part way out of its sheath and reveals that it’s glowing a bright blue. Thorin raises his head as strange machinery noises are heard and sees cracks form in the sand on the floor of the cave.<br/>	“Wake up! Wake up,” cries Thorin.<br/>	Before anyone can react, the floor of the cave collapses downwards, revealing that it had been a trap door. The entire company falls down a chute, slides through a tunnel, and lands in a giant wooden cage. As they struggle to get up, a horde of goblins swarms around them, taking their weapons and dragging them away. Bofur and Bifur keep Kat somewhat hidden between the two of them, attempting to keep her away from the hands of the goblins. The horde brings them through a vast network of tunnels and wooden bridges to a throne room. A massive goblin is sitting atop a throne, holding a mace topped with a skull. He is far larger than any of the other goblins, and far more ugly, with warts all over his swinging chin. Their weapons are piled together and the great goblin jumps off his throne and approaches the company.<br/>	“Who would be so bold as to come armed to my kingdom? Spies? Thieves? Assassins,” questions the great goblin.<br/>	“Dwarves, your malevolence,” announces a smaller goblin.<br/>	Suddenly, a hand is gripping Kat tightly and she is pulled from the group.<br/>	“And a female,” announces the goblin holding her.<br/>	“What are you doing in these parts, especially with a lovely maiden? Speak,” cries the great goblin.<br/>	None of the dwarves respond and Kat is jostled by the goblin as he shoves her to the ground in front of the great goblin.<br/>	“Well then, if they will not talk, we’ll make them squawk! Bring out the mangler! Bring out the bone breaker! We start with her,” announces the great goblin.<br/>	The dwarves stand in stunned silence for a moment, before Thorin steps forward with a yell for them to wait. He was a moment too slow however, as Kat hears the crack of a whip and pain erupts across her back. Screaming in pain and surprise, she falls forward across the pile of weapons and knick knacks that had been taken from the group.<br/>	“Well, well, well, look who it is. Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror; King under the mountain,” says the great goblin, bowing exaggeratedly to Thorin. “Oh, but I’m forgetting, you don’t have a mountain. And you’re not a king. Which makes you nobody, really. I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A pale orc astride a white warg.”<br/>	“Azog the Defiler was destroyed. He was slain in battle long ago,” states Thorin in disbelief.<br/>	“So you think his defiling days are done, do you? Send word to the pale orc; tell him I have found his prize,” instructs the great goblin.<br/>	A tiny goblin writes down the message on his slate, cackling, and then pulls a lever. He and his basket begin sliding down a system of ropes and pulleys, disappearing into the darkness. Kat shifts slightly and feels her hand hit something hard and cold. Looking discreetly, she realizes she is holding the key to the mountain, and she quickly tucks it into her pocket on the front of her tunic along with sliding one of her daggers up her sleeve. Dozens of goblins around her carry massive instruments of torture on their shoulders, bringing them to the great goblin, who is dancing and singing loudly.<br/>	“Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung! You’ll be beaten and battered, from racks you’ll be hung. You will lie down here and never be found, down in the deep of Goblintown,” warbles the great goblin.<br/>	Kat is pushed aside as one of the goblins begins examining the weapons the group had brought with them. He picks up Thorin’s sword and slides it a few inches out of its sheath, gasping and throwing it back down. It lands in view of all the goblins who howl in fear and rage as they retreat from it, including the great goblin.<br/>	“I know that sword! It is the Goblin Cleaver, the Biter, the blade that sliced a thousand necks,” cries the great goblin. “Slash them! Beat them! Kill them! Kill them all! Cut off his head!”<br/>	Goblins hold Thorin down and one of them pulls out a knife, preparing to behead Thorin. Suddenly, there is a massive explosion of bright light. Kat’s ears begin to ring as the sounds around her are muted from the sound, looking around in confusion. Everyone is knocked down, including the great goblin. When the force of the explosion has passed and most of the lights in the area have been snuffed out, she can finally make out Gandalf, holding up his staff and his sword. Taking the opportunity, she snatches her sword, quiver and bow, and her daggers, preparing for the fight that was surely about to ensue. Light slowly returns to the area as the goblins and dwarves slowly look up, recovering from the shock.<br/>	“Take up arms. Fight. Fight,” cries Gandalf.<br/>	The company quickly jumps to their feet and begin fighting the goblins, snatching their various as Kat throws them at their respective owners. The great goblin, still lying on the ground, sees Gandalf’s sword and points at it, crying aloud to the other goblins.<br/>	“He wields the Foe Hammer, the Beater, bright as daylight,” he cries.<br/>	Kat continues throwing weapons to the dwarves as some of them reach for the pile on their own and follow her lead, tossing weapons as well. They use their weapons to defeat the goblins surrounding them. Oin even manages to reclaim his hearing trumpet, although it was quite flattened. Nori, while fighting, falls to the floor and the great goblin runs at him, swinging his mace.<br/>	“Nori,” yells Kat.<br/>	Thorin jumps forward and deflects the great goblin’s blow, causing the great goblin to stumble backward and fall off the edge of his platform to the depths below. The fight continues to wage on as Gandalf calls for everyone to follow him quickly. Cutting down the goblins around them, they all run along a pathway leading away from the throne room. Hundreds of goblins run after them as they race across suspended passageways.<br/>	“Post,” shouts Dwalin as he sees goblins running toward them in front.<br/>	He and some of the others cut a guardrail post from the side of the path and hold it out in front of them like a massive spear. He and the others charge at the oncoming goblins and sweep them away with the long rail. Dropping the rail, Dwalin pulls out his axes and begins knocking the goblins aside, prompting the rest of the company to do the same. Kat throws a dagger into the skull of a goblin who gets a little too close to Bombur for comfort, surprising him as it wizzes past his head. Gloin hits one goblin who falls and lands on another suspended path, breaking the path and dropping all the goblins on it into the darkness below. Goblins begin swinging from ropes toward the company, one almost kicking Kat off the path as she narrowly dodges it and bumps into Thorin, alerting him to the situation.<br/>	“Cut the ropes,” calls Thorin.<br/>	Thorin and some of the others cut the ropes holding a raised platform in place and the platform falls outward, entangling the goblins swinging on the ropes. As Kili fights, several goblins begin shooting arrows at him. He deflects some arrows with his sword before grabbing a nearby ladder and dropping it on the oncoming goblins. Kili, Kat and some of the others run forward, pushing the ladder and the goblins it has trapped in front of them. As they approach a missing area of the path, the goblins fall down into the darkness while the ladder acts as a bridge for their group to cross the rest of the path. As soon as everyone has crossed, Dwalin breaks the ladder to prevent the goblins from chasing them across it. As they continue running through the maze-like paths, they get to a section of the path suspended by ropes from above. They slice some ropes, and the pathway sings away from the rest of the path.<br/>	“Jump,” shouts Thorin.<br/>	Several of the dwarves manage to jump to the other path, however, before the rest can, the path swings back like a pendulum to where it started and several goblins leap on. Kat fights against the goblins as she waits for the path to swing back. As it does, the rest of the company manages to jump to the new path as well, cutting the ropes and causing the swinging path to fall along with all of the goblins on it. As they continue running and cutting through goblins, Kat begins to feel the pain in her torso and back increase, causing her to gasp for breath slightly. Gandalf strikes a rock above them with his staff, causing the rock to fall down and begin rolling in front of the company, squashing all the goblins in their way. Soon, they approach a bridge between two walls of the cavern. As they try to cross it, the great goblin suddenly breaks through from underneath and pulls himself up onto the bridge in front of the company. As they all pause, hundreds of goblins approach them from all sides.<br/>	“Thought you could escape me,” booms the great goblin.<br/>	He swings his mace twice at Gandalf, causing Gandalf to stumble back and almost fall.<br/>	“What are you going to do now, wizard,” taunts the great goblin.<br/>	Gandalf leaps forward and strikes the great goblin in the eye with his staff. The great goblin drops his mace and clutches his face in pain, uttering curses. Gandalf steps forward and slices the great goblin in the stomach, causing the great goblin to fall to his knees while clutching his stomach.<br/>	“That’ll do it,” mutters the great goblin.<br/>	Gandalf again swings his sword and slices the great goblin’s neck, causing him to fall down dead. His weight causes the bridge to start shaking and suddenly, the section of bridge on which the company is standing breaks away from the rest of the bridge and starts sliding down the side of the cavern. The bridge slides at a terrific speed down the cavern’s wall, demolishing everything in its way as the company clings on, screaming in terror. The bridge slows down and lands at the base of the cavern, breaking apart and burying the dwarves in the timber and wood. Gandalf gets up from the pile of wreckage and pulls Kat out after him, inspecting the rest of the dwarves who are still stuck in the wreckage.<br/>	“Well, that could have been worse,” states Bofur.<br/>	Suddenly, the heavy corpse of the great goblin lands on the wreckage, squishing the dwarves further. Kat cringes as they cry out in pain, glad Gandalf had pulled her out.<br/>	“You’ve got to be joking,” cries Dwalin.<br/>	Kat helps the others from the rubble, grimacing as the movement pulls at the wound on her back. Kili then looks up and sees thousands of goblins running at them.<br/>	“Gandalf,” he alerts.<br/>	“There’s too many! We can’t fight them,” announces Dwalin.<br/>	“Only one thing will save us: daylight! Come on! On your feet,” yells Gandalf.<br/>	The dwarves get up quickly and run after Gandalf. They run through tunnels, managing to escape through an exit on the side of the mountain and run down the side of the steep, tree covered mountain. They eventually pause to collect their breath, Kat leaning against a tree as she clutches her torso as Gandalf begins to count to make sure everyone has gotten out.<br/>	“Five, six, seven, eight… Bifur, Bofur, Kat… that’s ten… Fili, Kili… that’s twelve… and Bombur that makes thirteen. Where’s Bilbo? Where is our hobbit,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	Kat instantly straightens up, looking for her brother. She tries to recall when she had last seen him, but can’t seem to remember, causing panic to rise.<br/>	“Curse the halfling! Now he’s lost,” cries Dwalin.<br/>	“I thought he was with Dori,” says Gloin.<br/>	“Don’t blame me,” yells Dori.<br/>	“Well, where did you last see him,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	“I don’t remember seeing him at all once we fell,” worries Kat.<br/>	“I think I saw him slip away, when they first collared us,” states Nori.<br/>	“What happened exactly? Tell me,” snaps Gandalf.<br/>	“I’ll tell you what happened. Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it! He’s thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our hobbit again. He is long gone,” curses Thorin.<br/>	“If he is, it would be because you never gave him a chance to prove himself! You’ve done nothing but think poorly of him since the moment you laid eyes on him! Perhaps if you weren’t such an arrogant ass, more people would be willing to help you,” shouts Kat.<br/>	“No, I’m not,” announces Bilbo, stepping from behind a tree.<br/>	Kat gasps and runs to him, hugging him tightly. The dwarves stare at him in shock and relief as Gandalf laughs.<br/>	“Bilbo Baggins! I’ve never been so glad to see anyone in my life,” chuckles Gandalf.<br/>	Bilbo strides forward into the group, still holding Kat’s hand as she refuses to let him go. He pats Balin affectionately on the shoulder, giving a small smile.<br/>	“Bilbo, we’d given you up,” laughs Kili.<br/>	“How on earth did you get past the goblins,” asks Fili.<br/>	“How, indeed,” says Dwalin.<br/>	There’s an awkward pause as Bilbo straightens a bit. He eventually gives a nervous laugh and puts his hands on his hips.<br/>	“Well, what does it matter? He’s back,” states Gandalf.<br/>	“It matters! I want to know: why did you come back,” asks Thorin.<br/>	“Look, I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you’re right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that’s where I belong. That’s home. And that’s why I came back, cause you don’t have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can,” explains Bilbo.<br/>	Kat smiles at her brother and hugs him again tightly. Suddenly, howling can be heard and everyone looks around.<br/>	“Out of the frying pan…” mutters Thorin.<br/>	“...and into the fire. Run! Run,” cries Gandalf.<br/>	They all start running down the mountain as fast as they can with wargs following them rapidly. Soon, the foremost warg catches up to the group and leaps at Bilbo. He ducks behind a rock and the warg’s jaws snap in the air over his head. The warg lands in front of him and growls, charging at him. Bilbo pulls out his sword and holds it in front of him, causing the charging warg to impale itself in the head, surprising Bilbo. A few more wargs catch up to the fleeing group but are quickly dispatched. The company reaches a large outcropping of land with a few trees growing on it, realizing they are trapped.<br/>	“Up into the trees, all of you! Come on, climb! Bilbo, climb,” yells Gandalf.<br/>	Bifur throws an axe, killing a warg that had been approaching. Bofur jumps off a rock and grabs a tree branch, using Dwalin’s head as a stepping stone to the tree. The other dwarves begin climbing into the trees as well, while Bilbo is trying to pull his stuck sword from the dead warg’s head. Kat scales a tree quickly behind Fili and Kili, managing to go high into the branches due to her small size.<br/>	“They’re coming,” announces Thorin.<br/>	Gandalf climbs to the top of the furthest tree while Dwalin boosts Balin up. Thorin, Bombur, and the rest climb into the trees too as the wargs and orcs approach. Bilbo finally manages to pull his sword out of the warg and quickly clambers up a tree as the wargs rush below him. Dozens of wargs circle trees in which the company members are perched, growling and snapping at them. Suddenly, the wargs cease their growling and turn as the white warg, with Azog on it’s back, approaches slowly.<br/>	“Azog,” murmurs Thorin.<br/>	“No. No it can’t be. It can’t,” gasps Kat, earning confused looks from the princes.<br/>	“Nuzdigid? Nuzdi gast? Ganziligi unarug obod nauzdanish, Torin undag Trainob,” taunts Azog. (Do you smell it? The scent of fear? I remember your father reeked of it, Thorin son of Thrain.)<br/>	Thorin looks stricken with pain and grief, realizing that Azog had captured his father.<br/>	“It cannot be,” he whispers.<br/>	“Kod, Toragid biriz. Wororida,” orders Azog. (That one is mine. Kill the others!)<br/>	At his command, the wargs leap forward and try to climb the trees. They jump as high as they can, scrabbling at the tree trunks and breaking apart branches in their jaws. The trees shake violently at the assault and the company struggles to hold on.<br/>	“Sho gad’adol,” yells Azog. (Drink their blood.)<br/>	With the weight of the wargs climbing it, the furthest tree from the edge of the cliff, which Bilbo and several other dwarves are in, gets uprooted from the ground and begins leaning wildly. As more wargs grab onto it, the tree tips over and lands on the next tree, causing the others to jump from the falling tree to the next. However, this tree tips over as well. Like dominoes, all the trees begin falling over. The company manages to jump onto the last tree, on the very edge of the cliff, that doesn’t fall over, causing Azog to laugh. Suddenly, fiery pinecones sail through the air at the wargs, who retreat from the fire. Gandalf gives more pinecones to the others, who all begin throwing them like missiles at the wargs. All the area around the tree gets set on fire, forcing the wargs to retreat a distance, while a few gallop away with their fur alight. Azog roars in anger and frustration as the dwarves cheer, causing Kat to flinch violently as memories rise to the forefront of her mind. Suddenly, their cheers turn into cries of fear as the roots of the tree they are in start to give way. The tree tips precariously over the edge of the cliff, but comes to a rest sticking straight out away from the edge. Everyone tries to hold on as they get flung around, but Ori loses his grip on the tree and falls, managing to grab on to Dori’s leg. Because of the extra weight, Dori loses his grip on the tree as well and falls, but Gandalf quickly swings his staff down and Dori grabs on to the end of it.<br/>	“Hold on Ori,” shouts Dori.<br/>	Azog growls and Thorin glares at him from his spot on the tree. He then pulls himself up, his sword drawn, and walks down the leaning trunk as Kat and the others, hanging from the tree, look on. Thorin runs through the burning ground at Azog and his white warg. Azog spreads his arms wide with a smug grin on his face and Thorin growls as he runs with his sword up and his oaken branch shield held in front of him. Azog crouches, then roars as his warg leaps at Thorin. Thorin tries to swing his sword, but the warg hits him in the chest with its forepaw, smashing Thorin to the ground. As Thorin gets back on his feet, panting, Azog and his white warg wheel around and charge at Thorin again. Azog swings his mace and smashes Thorin in the face before Thorin can react, brutally flinging him to the ground by the impact.<br/>	“No,” Balin cries.<br/>	Azog roars in excitement and Kat feels something snap within her. Hatred and fury come rushing forth as though a dam had broken in her mind along with memories and pain she had held back for so long. She stands on the tree along with her brother and pulls her sword from its sheath. The white warg clamps its jaws around Thorin, causing him to yell in pain. Dwalin attempts to get off the tree to assist Thorin, but the branches he is holding on to break, swinging him precariously over the edge and preventing him from reaching Thorin.<br/>	“Thorin! No,” shouts Dwalin.<br/>	As the white warg holds Thorin in its mouth, Thorin manages to hit its head with the pommel of his sword. Roaring, the warg throws him several feet away onto a flat rock. Thorin lands heavily, his sword falling out of his hands, almost unconscious.<br/>	“Biriz torag khobdudol,” orders Azog. (Bring me the dwarf’s head.)<br/>	One of the orcs jumps off his warg and approaches Thorin. Bilbo, seeing this, pulls out his own sword, which glows blue. The orc approaches Thorin and places its sword against his neck. Raising the sword, the orc prepares to decapitate Thorin, causing Bilbo and Kat to jump into action. As he swings his sword down, Bilbo throws himself at the orc and knocks him over. As they fight, Bilbo manages to stab and kill the orc while Kat shields Thorin. As Azog growls in anger, Thorin goes unconscious. Pulling his sword out of the dead orc’s body, Bilbo joins Kat in front of Thorin. Azog finally notices Kat, grinning at her in recognition.<br/>	“Jiak nauk-membas lat. Lat ukcream uko preavavausan,” taunts Azog. (I remember you. You scream so pretty.)<br/>	“I’ve waited a long time to see you die,” growls Kat.<br/>	The hatred in her voice startles even her, though she can’t find it in herself to care at the moment. At Azog’s order, a couple wargs and orcs approach the two hobbits, snarling. Suddenly, Fili, Kili, and Dwalin, who have managed to get off the tree, plow into the wargs from the side and begin fighting them. In the confusion, Bilbo yells and leaps forward, wounding a warg. Azog charges at Kat, causing her to try to jump out of the way. Unfortunately, he reaches out and grabs ahold of her hair. She cries out slightly before using her momentum to kick his warg in the eye and swiping her sword up at his arm. The warg yelps and jerks away, causing Azog to lose his hold on Kat as she falls to the ground.<br/>	“Jiak won'av drepa lat. Lat liwo be ij avrophausan,” Azog yells in anger. (I won’t kill you. You will be a trophy.)<br/>	Suddenly, an eagle swoops out of the sky and catches Dori and Ori as they fall from the tree. Several more eagles appear and join the fray, some grabbing wargs and orcs to toss them over the cliff while others knock down trees to crush the wargs below them. Another eagle fans the flames with its wings, causing an inferno which burns the wargs, leading Azog to snarl in frustration. One eagle gently grabs Thorin and his sword in its talons and flies away. Azog roars and jumps back from Kat as an eagle flies by him and snatches her off the ground. It then throws Kat and she screams as she falls toward the ground, only to land on the back of another eagle. The rest of the eagles proceed to snatch the dwarves out of the tree and fly away. The eagles soar through the sky over a great distance and many landscapes. Kat rests her forehead against the back of the eagle she was on, feeling tears slip down her face as her hatred turns to sorrow. The eagles approach a massive rock structure, where the one carrying Thorin gently lays him and his sword on a flat area. Gandalf rushes toward Thorin as the others slip off their respective eagles. Kat stays back, sliding down to the ground and hugging her knees to her chest as she continues to cry silently. No one notices her as they surround Thorin while Gandalf whispers a spell to heal him. His eyes flutter open and he gasps for air.<br/>	“The halflings,” asks Thorin weakly.<br/>	“It’s alright. They’re here. They’re quite safe,” soothes Gandalf.<br/>	Dwalin and Kili help Thorin up and he shrugs them off, approaching Bilbo.<br/>	“You! What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed! Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild and that you had no place amongst us,” demands Thorin as he advances toward Bilbo. “I’ve never been so wrong in all my life.”<br/>	Thorin grabs Bilbo and embraces him. The other dwarves cheer loudly and slap each other on the back while Gandalf smiles. Bilbo, looking quite surprised, hugs Thorin back.<br/>	“I am sorry I doubted you,” apologizes Thorin.<br/>	“No, I would have doubted me too. I’m not a hero or a warrior… not even a burglar,” jokes Bilbo.<br/>	As everyone chuckles, the eagles fly away, screeching. Thorin looks beyond Bilbo and sees something and the others follow his gaze.<br/>	“Is that what I think it is,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	In the distance, on the horizon, they see the outline of a single, solitary mountain.<br/>	“Erebor- The Lonely Mountain. The last of the great dwarf kingdoms of Middle Earth,” explains Gandalf.<br/>	“Our home,” mutters Thorin.<br/>	A bird chirps and flies by.<br/>	“A raven! The birds are returning to the mountain,” cries Oin.<br/>	“That, my dear Oin, is a thrush,” corrects Gandalf.<br/>	“But we’ll take it as a sign. A good omen,” says Thorin.<br/>	“You’re right. I do believe the worst is behind us,” states Bilbo.<br/>	Finally, Bofur’s eyes land on Kat’s trembling form and go wide.<br/>	“Kat,” he cries as he rushes forward.<br/>	This catches everyone’s attention and they turn toward the crying hobbit. Bilbo rushes to her side and wipes her still streaming tears from her cheeks.<br/>	“It was him. Bilbo, it was him. I never knew his name, but it was him,” whispers Kat.<br/>	Bilbo freezes and pulls back slightly, alarm flashing across his face. The others watch in confusion and worry as she curls in on herself further, choking on a sob. None of them had ever seen her cry until now.<br/>	“You don’t mean… he’s not the one who… I thought all the orcs from the raiding party were killed,” stammers Bilbo.<br/>	“I did too. But he’s not, he was right there. He remembered me, Bilbo,” cries Kat.<br/>	“The raiding party? You don’t mean the one that held you and your mentor captive, do you,” asks Balin.<br/>	“He was in charge of them. I didn’t know black speech then, so I never knew his name. He’s the one who tortured me, the one who raped me. I thought he was dead,” sobs Kat.<br/>	The dwarves seem to take a collective breath at the new information and she can feel Bofur tense next to her. She curls in tighter against herself, hiding her face from the others. She can hear some of the dwarves cursing in Khuzdul as she attempts to calm her breathing. Bombur kneels next to her and begins murmuring in Khuzdul and, while she may not understand what he’s saying, his tone of voice is calming. As her sobs turn to hiccups, she feels Bofur petting her hair in a soothing manner. Eventually, she manages to uncurl herself and face the others. Embarrassed at her outburst, she gets stiffly to her feet and clears her throat, brushing her wild hair behind her ear.<br/>	“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have reacted that way,” she murmurs.<br/>	“Lass, we’d be more concerned if you didn’t,” comforts Balin.<br/>	“It was a long time ago. It doesn’t matter now,” she argues.<br/>	“It does matter. We all care about you lass. You don’t have to talk to us about it now, or ever, but we’re here if you do,” soothes Bofur.<br/>	“Now we have even more reason to kill him,” growls Thorin.<br/>	After a few more comforting words and tender hugs, the company sets their sights toward the mountain once again.<br/>	“Time to get you boys home,” smiles Kat.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Old Family and New</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In the following days, they travel farther from the Carrock and closer to their destination, but everyone remains cautious. Their close call with Azog has left everyone on edge, Thorin and Kat especially. The two talk more than they previously had, learning more about each other and losing the tension that had built up between them. Thorin had eased up on Bilbo as well, trusting him far more than he had before.<br/>One evening, he sends Bilbo and Kat to scout for Azog and the other orcs. Kat leaves Bilbo to take the lead, following behind in case of an attack. They come upon an outcropping of rocks and crouch behind it. Bilbo peeks over some of the rocks and sees Azog and his warg scouts running along a ridgeline not far away, occasionally stopping to smell the air in their pursuit of the company. Not picking up on their scent, they continue on their way, causing Kat to sigh quietly in relief. Suddenly, a snarl comes from the side and Kat pulls Bilbo back behind the rocks, pushing him back as far as she can with her arm as she grips the hilt of her sword anxiously. Bilbo peeks around once again and sees a large bear watching Azog from another pile of rocks, snarling softly. He motions for Kat to begin sneaking away from the beast and they quietly make their way back to the company, Kat glancing around warily the entire time.<br/>	“How close is the pack,” asks Dwalin once they arrive.<br/>	“Too close. A couple of leagues, no more, but that is not the worst of it,” answers Bilbo.<br/>	Kat remains behind him, watching the area they had just come from for any sign of orcs, wargs, or bears. She stays tense as she does so, knowing the bear had been far closer than the wargs and was more likely to catch their scent.<br/>	“Have the wargs picked up our scent,” questions Dwalin.<br/>	“Not yes, but they will. We have another problem,” worries Bilbo.<br/>	“Did they see you,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	“No, that’s not it,” answers Bilbo.<br/>	Gandalf smiles and turns to the dwarves.<br/>	“What did I tell you? Quiet as a mouse. Excellent burglar material,” he boasts.<br/>	The dwarves chuckle loudly in appreciation and Bilbo looks at Kat in exasperation. Kat shakes her head and whistles sharply, mimicking a bird’s call. The others quiet down and look at her, to which she tilts her head toward Bilbo.<br/>	“I’m trying to tell you there is something else out there,” snips Bilbo.<br/>	This catches their attention and looks of worry pass through the group. Kat glances between them and back behind them as she waits for something to happen. Yes, she hid her whistle to make it sound like a bird, but that combined with their scent and the bear would surely know that someone was near.<br/>	“What form did it take? Like a bear,” asks Gandalf.<br/>	“Ye-yes. But bigger, much bigger,” answers Bilbo, looking curiously at Gandalf.<br/>	“You knew about this beast,” Bofur asks Gandalf.<br/>	Gandalf turns and walks a few steps away, looking in the same direction as Kat.<br/>	“I say we double back,” offers Bofur.<br/>	“And be run down by a pack of orcs,” reminds Thorin.<br/>	“There is a house, it’s not far from here, where we might take refuge,” states Gandalf.<br/>	“Who’s house? Are they friend or foe,” asks Thorin.<br/>	“Neither. He will help us, or he will kill us,” says Gandalf.<br/>	Kat shoots the wizard an exasperated look and turns to the others. The dwarves were looking at one another in concern.<br/>	“What choice do we have,” sighs Thorin.<br/>	A loud roar splits the night behind them, causing Kat to spin toward the sound. The bear had found them.<br/>	“None,” states Gandalf.<br/>	The company takes off, running after Gandalf as the threat gains on them. They run through plains and across streams, to which Kat’s still damaged back screams at her. As they run through a forest, Kat sees Azog and his orcs racing through the trees as well. Both groups stop suddenly when an ear splitting roar sounds nearby.<br/>	“This way, quickly,” shouts Gandalf.<br/>	As they exit the forest, they see a house surrounded by a hedge in the middle of a plain. They run toward it, Bombur outrunning everyone else in his fear while Kat slowly falls to the back of the group from the stinging pain in her back. She notes absently that she likely reopened the wound as the group runs through a gate in the hedge.<br/>	“Come on, get inside,” instructs Gandalf.<br/>	They all run to the front door of the house, only to realize that it’s closed. Bombur, who reaches the door first, throws himself against it but falls flat on his back when the door doesn’t budge. The rest of the dwarves catch up and begin throwing themselves against the door, trying to open it as well. Kat bends slightly and rests her hands against her knees, breathing wildly as she feels blood dripping down her back. She looks back as a massive bear breaks out from the edge of the forest and begins running toward them.<br/>	Everyone is shouting for someone to open the doors and to hurry while Kat simply stares at the approaching bear, unable to look away. Thorin pushes himself through the dwarves pressed against the door and manages to raise the exterior bolt, opening the doors. Bifur grabs Kat’s arm and hauls her into the house and pushes her as far from the door as possible. She falls on a pile of hay, somewhat cushioning her fall, as she watches the dwarves push themselves against the door, but the bear has already gotten its head in the door. As the bear roars and tries to push the door open, the dwarves yell and strain to close it, Bilbo pointing his sword unsteadily at the bear.<br/>	“Be careful,” shouts Kat.<br/>	The bear locks eyes with her for a moment and she freezes, feeling as though she was looking into the eyes of a human. With a final heave, the dwarves manage to close the door and drop the bolt across it. Kat breaks from her stupor as they all sigh in exhaustion.<br/>	“What is that,” asks Ori.<br/>	“That is our host,” announces Gandalf, receiving bewildered looks from everyone. “His name is Beorn, and he is a skin-changer. Sometimes he’s a huge black bear, sometimes he’s a great strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be reasoned with. However, he is not overfond of dwarves.”<br/>	“He’s leaving,” Ori announces, peaking out a crack in the door.<br/>	“Come away from there! It’s not natural, none of it. It’s obvious: he’s under some dark spell,” states Dori, pulling Ori away from the door.<br/>	“Don’t be a fool. He’s under no enchantment but his own. Alright now, get some sleep, all of you. You’ll be safe here tonight,” admonishes Gandalf.<br/>	Still slightly in shock from the earlier events, Kat lies back on the pile of hay as Fili and Kili come to lay next to her. Her mind races as she thinks of the bear and the intelligence in his eyes as he had looked at her. She falls asleep quickly, listening to the sounds of the night.<br/>➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳<br/>	Kat is awoken the next morning by a noise and slowly raises her head a bit. An extremely large man enters the house, towering even taller than Gandalf, causing Kat’s eyes to widen slightly. The man enters a room and she gently gets to her feet, trying not to wake the dwarves or alert their host. Upon doing so, she feels her back ache and realizes she had forgotten to have Oin look at it in all of the confusion the night before.<br/>	Walking toward a large table that she can only assume is the dining table, she soon spots a cluster of kittens curled into a blanket, staring up at her in confusion. She coos quietly and kneels in front of the kittens, causing a few of them to back up in apprehension.<br/>	“Don’t worry. I won’t hurt you,” she soothes.<br/>	Stretching her hand out to the small animals, she waits for them to approach her so as not to startle them. One of the kittens, a black cat with big blue eyes, slowly sniffs her hand before rubbing its head against it. Upon being given this permission, Kat pets the kitten before gently lifting it into her lap. The tiny cat mews in response to the movement, rearing up on its hind legs and putting the front ones on her chest, leaning up to sniff at her face. She laughs quietly and she leans down slightly, allowing the kitten to investigate and rub her face with its head.<br/>	“Oh, you’re a friendly one, aren’t you? Maybe you like me because my name is Kat too,” she laughs.<br/>	A few of the other kittens, emboldened by their sibling’s behavior, approach her as well. Some of them rub at her knees while one particularly brave kitten pulls its way up onto her shoulder, nestling in her hair. She continues laughing and shushes the meowing cats so they don’t wake the others.<br/>	“They seem to like you,” comes a voice from behind her.<br/>	Kat startles slightly, causing a few of the kittens to meow at her in annoyance, and she finds Beorn standing in the doorway, looking down at her. Some of the kittens run to him and he picks them up, gently petting them.<br/>	“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you. I just seen the cats and couldn’t help myself. I love animals,” she apologizes.<br/>	She attempts to get up and Beorn chuckles at her, motioning for her to stay where she was. The small black kitten curls up in her lap as she sits back again, kneading its little paws against her leg.<br/>	“No need to apologize, you didn’t disturb me. I’m simply surprised to see Misty so eager to meet a stranger. She’s usually very timid,” explains Beorn.<br/>	The black kitten lifts her head up at the sound of her name, giving a responding meow that causes Kat to chuckle slightly.<br/>	“Misty? That’s a beautiful name. It suits her. Reminds me of the Misty Mountains,” she states.<br/>	Movement from the other room causes both of them to turn and find the dwarves beginning to stir. Thorin is already standing along with Gandalf and they both look over at the pair in the dining room. Gandalf moves toward Beorn and they both go into the kitchen where Beorn begins making breakfast. Kat gently scoops Misty into her arms and goes back toward the dwarves. Fili and Kili both smile as they see her snuggling the small ball of fluff and begin teasing her for once again finding an animal to cuddle up to. She banters with them for a moment before moving over to Oin who is once again checking on Thorin. Thorin, of course, is brushing Oin off and trying to get away from the overbearing healer. Taking pity on him, Kat decides to bring up her back to get Oin away from Thorin.<br/>	“Oin, could you look at my back? I think it reopened in all the excitement last night,” she asks, throwing a wink toward Thorin.<br/>	This gets Oin’s attention quickly and he leads her off to a secluded area to look at her wound. After applying some more salve and changing the bloodied bandages, he gives her a stern reminder to be careful with her back before letting her go back to the others. Upon arrival, she sees that Beorn had finished their breakfast and the dwarves were surrounding the table. She takes the seat next to Thorin and Misty quickly jumps up to perch on her shoulder as the other kitten had earlier, causing Kat to laugh as she feels a cool nose press against her neck.<br/>	“It seems Misty has taken quite a liking to you. Perhaps, once you finish what you have set out to do, she can accompany you home,” suggests Beorn.<br/>	Kat lights up and looks up at him happily.<br/>	“Really,” she asks.<br/>	Beorn chuckles and pats her head, giving her a nod before going to fill Fili’s cup with milk. Bilbo pads into the kitchen, clearly having just woken up, and seats himself at the table as well. He gives the kitten perched on his sisters shoulder a confused look before turning back to their host.<br/>	“So you are the one they call Oakenshield. Tell me, why is Azog the Defiler hunting you,” questions Beorn.<br/>	At the mention of the orc, Kat freezes with her glass of milk halfway to her mouth, tensing up. Beorn and a few of the dwarves shoot her a glance, but she looks down at her plate and reaches to pet Misty, calming herself down.<br/>	“You know of Azog? How,” asks Thorin, looking back to their host.<br/>	“My people were the first to live in the mountains, before the orcs came down from the north. The Defiler killed most of my family, but some he enslaved,” explains Beorn.<br/>	Glancing at his wrists, Kat sees the remnants of manacles and shudders slightly. Azog’s promise to keep her as a trophy rings in her ears and she closes her eyes as she realizes that will be her future if she gets captured.<br/>	“Not for work, you understand, but for sport. Caging skin-changers and torturing them seemed to amuse him,” states Beorn.<br/>	“Torture does seem to be something he enjoys,” murmurs Kat, earning another look from the others.<br/>	“There are others like you,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	“Once, there were many,” answers Beorn.<br/>	“And now,” questions Bilbo.<br/>	“Now, there is only one,” responds Beorn solemnly. “You need to reach the mountain before the last days of autumn?”<br/>	“Before Durin’s Day falls, yes,” answers Gandalf.<br/>	“You are running out of time,” states Beorn.<br/>	“Which is why we must go through Mirkwood,” says Gandalf.<br/>	“A darkness lies upon that forest. Fell things creep beneath those trees. There is an alliance between the orcs of Moria and the necromancer in Dol Guldur. I would not venture there except in great need,” explains Beorn.<br/>	“We will take the elven road. That path is still safe,” announces Gandalf.<br/>	“Safe? The wood elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin. They’re less wise and more dangerous. But it matters not,” warns Beorn.<br/>	“What do you mean,” asks Thorin.<br/>	“These lands are crawling with orcs. Their numbers are growing, and you are on foot. You will never reach the forest alive,” states Beorn.<br/>	It’s quiet for a moment as they look at Beorn in shock. How else were they supposed to reach the mountain in time? Beorn stands up from the table and faces Thorin.<br/>	“I don’t like dwarves. They’re greedy and blind, blind to the lives of those they deem lesser than their own,” says Beorn, picking up a mouse that one of the dwarves had attempted to shoo from the table. “But orcs I hate more. What do you need?”<br/>	As everyone starts to get things ready, Kat goes out to the clover field with Misty and sits in the sun for a while. Absently, she begins making a flower crown out of the clovers, humming quietly to herself. Her mind drifts back to when she was younger and she and Bilbo would play out in the garden and see who could make the best flower crowns. They would present them to their parents and they would always end up saying that both crowns were beautiful and they couldn’t decide which was better. The sound of approaching footsteps breaks her from her thoughts and she looks up to see Thorin coming toward her. He sits down next to her and Misty curiously walks over to him.<br/>	“We’ll be leaving early tomorrow morning. You will have another day with your new friend,” he chuckles, petting Misty as she paws at the beads in his hair.<br/>	“A day’s rest will benefit all of us I think. It will give my back some time to heal, as well as the wounds you have that Gandalf couldn’t completely heal,” she states.<br/>	Thorin hums his agreement and they lapse into silence for a moment. Kat continues with her crown as Thorin tries to keep Misty from his braids, much to Kat’s amusement.<br/>	“I know you probably have some questions regarding the other night. Feel free to ask, though I reserve the right to not answer,” she offers.<br/>	“I don’t want to offend you or make you think of things you wish not to think about,” argues Thorin.<br/>	“I’m the one offering, so I won’t take any offense. And I wish I couldn’t think of that night, but unfortunately I can’t help but remember the details. So please, don’t worry about me,” she explains.<br/>	It’s quiet for a moment while he thinks of how to phrase his questions.<br/>	“How did you get away? Azog is not one to leave survivors if he can help it,” he finally asks.<br/>	“They were more interested in me than they were in Ciarán, so we used that to our advantage. I distracted them while he snuck away and ran to Bree to get help. They didn’t notice he was gone until late the second day. By then it was too late to stop him, so they started to leave with me. Luckily, the others got there before they could take me and fought them off. Azog had already gone ahead, so he wasn’t involved in the fighting,” she recalls.<br/>	Misty jumps onto Kat’s lap as though sensing the difficulty of the conversation, causing Kat to let out a small laugh. She scratches the kitten behind the ears before going back to the flowers.<br/>	“I hadn’t expected to leave Bree or the Shire, so I never thought I’d run into anymore orcs, but I’m glad that I did now. It hurt to see that Azog was still alive, but this quest has given me a purpose. I’ve never really had that before, never fit in enough for it. Plus, I have more family than just Bilbo now,” she chuckles.<br/>	“Unfortunately, this quest will likely not succeed. I lost the key in the goblin tunnels,” sighs Thorin.<br/>	Her head snaps up as she remembers the key hidden in her pocket, realizing that she had forgotten to tell them in the excitement. Reaching into her pocket, she pulls the key out and hands it to Thorin. His eyes widen slightly as he gently takes the key from her hand.<br/>	“I’m sorry, I forgot to tell you that I had grabbed it. I snuck it into my pocket after I was whipped. I didn’t want to risk losing it in the fight,” she explains.<br/>	“We owe you a great debt Ms. Baggins,” he states.<br/>	“Like I said, you guys are my family now, and I couldn’t let my family down like that,” she laughs.<br/>	Her name is called from behind them, causing the two to turn toward the sound. Bofur, Bifur, and Bombur stand by the barn, waving for Kat to join them. She quickly ties off the flower crown and stands up along with Thorin. Turning to Thorin, she hands him the flower crown and smiles at him.<br/>	“Here, the flowers will bring out the color in your eyes. Maybe Misty will try harassing that instead of your braids next time,” she laughs.<br/>	She quickly turns away from him and jogs over to the three dwarves waiting for her, Misty sprinting ahead of her to jump at Bofur. By the time she reaches them, Bofur had already picked Misty up and began petting her.<br/>	“I thought you three would be inside getting things ready for tomorrow,” states Kat.<br/>	“We have something we wanted to talk to you about,” replies Bofur.<br/>	The seriousness in his voice makes Kat anxious, furrowing her brows slightly in concern. Honestly, she didn’t even know Bofur could be serious.<br/>	“What’s wrong,” she asks.<br/>	“How much of our culture do you know,” questions Bombur.<br/>	“Balin told me a little bit at the beginning of the quest, but I’m sure there’s still a lot that I don’t know,” she answers.<br/>	“Did he tell you about how dwarves sometimes adopt others into their families, even when the other may have a family of their own,” signs Bifur.<br/>	“Yes, he explained that you could be claimed by multiple families as long as all the clans agree to it,” she responds.<br/>	“Lass, I already told you that you were already family to us, but we want to make it official in dwarven culture. Would you like to join the Broadbeam clan,” asks Bofur.<br/>	Kat stares at them in shock for a moment before Bombur holds out a little silver bead. Gently taking it in her hand, she examines the carved design and rolls the cool bead around in her palm.<br/>	“I’d be honored,” she answers.<br/>	The three dwarves smile at her and Bofur steps forward to braid the bead into her hair. The small braid falls toward the front, framing her face, and she can feel the cool metal against her skin. She reaches up to touch it again, smiling at her new family members.<br/>	“What does the carving mean,” she asks.<br/>	“It’s how you write Broadbeam in Khuzdul. Now that you’re officially a member of a dwarven clan, we can start teaching you our languages,” explains Bofur.<br/>	She hugs each of them tightly, laughing as Bofur spins her around gently. After he sets her down, he puts his hands on her shoulders and gives her a look.<br/>	“Now, what was that over there with Thorin,” he asks.<br/>	Bombur and Bifur laugh while Kat tilts her head a bit in confusion. Looking back at where Thorin now stood by the house with Balin, she notices them looking in her direction as well.<br/>	“What are you talking about? We were talking and I gave him back the key,” she says, looking back at Bofur.<br/>	“You gave him a little more than just the key,” chuckles Bombur.<br/>	“Oh, the flower crown? I made it because I was bored and he just so happened to be there when I was done. I was going to give it to Bilbo but he would probably have turned it into a competition,” she chuckles.<br/>	“Balin must not have reached that part of their history lesson,” states Bombur.<br/>	“What? Did I do something wrong,” she worries.<br/>	“Lass, in our culture, giving someone a handmade gift like that is typically a courting custom. It shows that you’re interested in that person romantically. Flowers are especially used for that, because they were somewhat rare living inside of a mountain,” explains Bofur.<br/>	Her eyes grow wide and she buries her face into her hands. She can feel the tips of her ears burning from the blush that was rapidly growing across her face and the three dwarves laugh at her obvious embarrassment.<br/>	“That wasn’t what that was supposed to mean! It was supposed to be a peace offering,” she groans.<br/>	“You offered a little more than peace, lass,” laughs Bofur.<br/>	She reaches out and smacks him on the arm, only causing them to laugh harder. He ducks behind Bifur for cover, but she just reaches around and continues batting at Bofur. Bombur says for Bofur to run while he holds her back, only to have her squirm from his grip and run after the fleeing dwarf. Bifur surprises her by picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder though, causing her to let out a startled cry and a laugh. Between her struggling, she looks at the three laughing dwarves and thinks that she can see herself enjoying being in this family.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Spiders and Elves</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I've been getting my elvish from three different sources so please forgive me if it's weird or wrong. I'm trying.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The company saddles up on some of Beorn’s ponies the next morning, Kat cuddling Misty once more before they have to set out. Beorn had already promised her that once they reach the end of their quest, she can have Misty as a pet.<br/>	“Go now, while you have the light. The hunters are not far behind,” suggests Beorn.<br/>	They ride rapidly across the land, Kat can see Beorn in his bear form following behind them. As they approach a looming, gloomy looking forest, they slow to a stop and begin to dismount. Gandalf walks to the edge of the forest through an ancient archway and Kat watches in trepidation.<br/>	“Here lies our path through Mirkwood,” he announces. “Set the ponies loose. Let them return to their master.”<br/>	Kat helps the others take the supplies off the ponies while Bilbo goes toward Gandalf. Bifur nudges her to get her attention and she turns to him.<br/>	“You’ve been avoiding Thorin today,” he signs.<br/>	“I’m not avoiding him, we’ve just been busy preparing,” she dismisses with a blush.<br/>	“Admit it lass, you’re not sure whether to admit it was an accident or make him think you meant it,” he teases.<br/>	She shoves him and he stumbles back while laughing. Bofur and Bombur see them and start chuckling as they guess the topic of conversation. She sees Thorin looking at them from the corner of her eye and avoids glancing over.<br/>	“Not my horse! I need it,” calls Gandalf as Nori goes to unsaddle his horse.<br/>	“You’re not leaving us,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	“I would not do this unless I had to,” replies Gandalf. “You’ve changed, Bilbo Baggins. You’re not the same hobbit as the one who left the Shire. Nor are you Kat. You’ve grown stronger.”<br/>	‘I was going to tell you; I… found something in the goblin tunnels,” stammers Bilbo.<br/>	“Found what,” questions Gandalf.<br/>	“My courage,” replies Bilbo after a brief pause.<br/>	Kat gives him a look, knowing her brother’s lying voice well. He truly had never been very good at lying.<br/>	“Well, that’s good. You’ll need it,” states Gandalf. “I’ll be waiting for you at the overlook, before the slopes of Erebor. Keep the map and key safe. Do not enter that mountain without me.”<br/>	He looks hard at Thorin as he says this, then continues toward his horse.<br/>	“This is not the Greenwood of old. The very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It will seek to enter your mind and lead you astray,” he explains.<br/>	“Lead us astray? What does that mean,” Bilbo asks Dwalin.<br/>	“You must stay on the path; do not leave it. If you do, you will never find it again,” Gandalf instructs.<br/>	Everyone turns toward the forest and simply stares at it in trepidation.<br/>	“Come on. We must reach the mountain before the sun sets on Durin’s Day,” states Thorin.<br/>	The company enters Mirkwood whereupon Kat immediately feels practically smothered by the trees and the oppressive feeling of the forest. They follow the paved path with Thorin in the lead and Kat stays toward the center of the group to avoid wandering. Something about this forest puts her very on edge and it’s all she can do to keep from running back to Beorn’s. As they continue following the path, it twists and turns over all sorts of terrain such as bare ground, high ledges, and fallen tree trunks. Everything seems gloomy and dark, and Kat feels as though she can’t even breathe. Dwalin has the brilliant idea of thumping the handle of his hammer on the ground to find the paving stones of the trail, ensuring that they stay on course.<br/>	Time seems to pass in an odd way, and Kat soon loses track of it all together. Had they been walking for hours or days? Her head is spinning and dark memories begin to surface, causing her to be constantly on edge. Every time their group stops to sleep, she ends up waking from horrible nightmares and barely getting any rest. Suddenly everyone runs into each other as Nori, in front, stops abruptly.<br/>	“Keep moving. Nori, why have we stopped,” questions Thorin.<br/>	“The path, it’s disappeared,” announces Nori.<br/>	In front of the company is a steep cliff with no path to be seen, causing Kat’s anxiety to spike.<br/>	“Find it. All of you look. Look for the path,” calls Thorin.<br/>	The dwarves are all muttering and rambling as they wander about, trying to find the trail. Bilbo absentmindedly plucks a spiderweb, causing Kat to shudder slightly. As they continue walking, Kat begins seeing things that couldn’t possibly be there. Ciarán stands in front of her along with Azog, and a little ways away she sees her parents. Children she soon recognizes to be herself and Bilbo run in front of her, chasing one another.<br/>	“A tobacco pouch. There’s dwarves in these woods,” announces Dori, holding up the pouch.<br/>	“Dwarves from the Blue Mountains, no less. This is exactly the same as mine,” says Bofur.<br/>	“Because it is yours. You understand? We’re going round in circles. We are lost,” explains Bilbo.<br/>	“We’re not lost. We keep heading east,” argues Dwalin.<br/>	“But which way is east? We’ve lost the sun,” points out Oin.<br/>	The dwarves begin bickering, causing Kat to slide down a tree and pull her knees to her chest. She covers her ears with her hands, trying to block out the angry voices. They start fighting and pushing each other around, and Kat feels a hand gently rest on her shoulder. Looking up, she sees Thorin looking down at her with worry in his eyes before looking around, suddenly alert. She listens closely and can faintly hear a strange whispering sound.<br/>	“Quiet! All of you! We’re being watched,” orders Thorin.<br/>	Before she can even blink, giant spiders come scurrying out of the trees and straight toward the company. She doesn’t react at first, thinking it was another hallucination, but when the dwarves begin to draw their weapons she realizes that they were indeed real. A hissing sound comes from behind her and she barely has time to turn toward the nightmare creature before it wraps her up in a sticky web. She screams, drawing the attention of some of the dwarves, and thrashes around as the spider finishes bundling her up.<br/>	Beginning to hyperventilate and no longer able to see, she squirms around as she feels the spiders pulling her along the ground and through the trees. She can hear the muffled voices of the dwarves as they fight against their bonds as well before she suddenly feels the world around her spin as she is placed upside down. The spiders hiss amongst themselves as she tries to maneuver her sword to cut through the webbing, but she finds it difficult while wrapped up so tightly, only causing her panic to rise. She can hear a faint thump and the spiders begin hissing more frantically, eventually chasing after the sound. The sound of a scuffle can be heard, though she can’t focus well enough as her head begins to swim. Spiders had always been a fear of hers, and being trapped while waiting for one to eat her has made it very difficult to breathe.<br/>She can barely choke out a cry as she feels herself fall to the ground. As she lies there, too dizzy and confused to do anything, something begins cutting through the webs entrapping her. Thorin’s face appears above her as he pulls her out, supporting her as her weak legs scramble to find purchase on the ground below her. The spiders that had run off begin to surround them, having heard or felt the struggle of their companion. The group begins fighting against them, but Bombur is knocked to the ground, the spider standing over him ready to bite.<br/>“Grab a leg,” someone shouts.<br/>Kat runs over to help, grabbing a leg along with the other dwarves and pulling as hard as she can. They manage to pull its legs off its body and the dismembered body lands on Bombur. As they continue hacking and slashing, Kat sees a spider grab Kili and yells his name. Grabbing one of her daggers, she throws it at the beast and it sinks into one of its eyes, causing it to let go of Kili and charge at her. Fili rushes to help dispatch the spider while Kili jumps back to his feet.<br/>Seeing that they couldn’t possibly kill all of the spiders, the company begins running through the forest, hoping to outrun the threat. More spiders jump down on threads of silk in front of the group, hissing at them and causing them to stop in their tracks. Thorin raises his sword in preparation to fight, but pauses and looks up, leading Kat to do the same. A blonde elf runs through the treetops, then swings down a spider’s silk in order to land on it and kill it. He slides on the forest floor under the spider facing Thorin, slicing it in half, and comes up kneeling with an arrow knocked in his bow and pointed at Thorin. Several other elves surround them, drawing arrows and pointing them at the dwarves.<br/>“Do not think I won’t kill you, dwarf. It would be my pleasure,” states the blonde.<br/>Suddenly, Kili cries out for help and they all whirl around to see a spider pulling him away by the foot. A female elf runs through the forest, killing three spiders with her bow and knife before killing the spider pulling Kili using an arrow. She turns to attack another spider behind her, and yet another spider rushes toward Kili.<br/>“Throw me your dagger! Quick,” shouts Kili.<br/>“Ndengina ta, an ngell nîn,” Kat begs the blonde in front of her. (Kill it, please!)<br/>“If you think I’m giving you a weapon, dwarf, you’re mistaken,” responds the female.<br/>She kills her spider with her knife, then spins around and throws it at the other spider, killing it and saving Kili while he looks on in amazement.<br/>“Search them,” commands the blonde.<br/>He walks over to Kat, staring at her curiously. Thorin attempts to shield her from the elf, but is pulled away by another. The intensity of the elf’s bright blue eyes is intimidating and Kat looks down at the ground in front of her.<br/>“Lle rangwa amin,” he asks. (Do you understand me?)<br/>“Pedin edhellen,” she responds quietly. (I speak elvish.)<br/>“Av-’osto, hiril vuin. Im Legolas,” he soothes. (Don’t be afraid, my lady. I am Legolas.)<br/>“Êl síla erin lû e-govaned vîn. Im Katriana. Prestad,” she questions. (A star shines on the hour of our meeting. I am Katriana. Is there trouble?)<br/>“Mankoi naa lle uma sinome,” he asks. (Why are you here?)<br/>	Kat looks over at Thorin before quickly turning back to Legolas. He glances at Thorin as well before raising an eyebrow at her.<br/>“Mankoi lle irma sint,” she evades. (Why do you want to know?)<br/>	“Am man? Lle lakwenien,” he questions. (Why? Are you joking?)<br/>“Vanya til,” she chuckles. (Fair point.)<br/>Glancing over at Fili, she finds the elf searching him finding knives all around his person. Fili even sighs when the elf finds even more in a hidden pocket and she has to hold back a giggle. Legolas chuckles slightly at her and turns to the female elf.<br/>“Gyrth in yngyl bain,” he asks. (Are the spiders dead?)<br/>“Ennorner gwanod in yngyl na nyryn. Engain nar,” she responds. (Yes, but more will come. They’re growing bolder.)<br/>Kat peacefully hands over all of her weapons to Legolas and he nods at her in thanks. Meanwhile, Fili opens his jacket to show the elf searching him that he has no knives left. However, the elf finds another one hidden in Fili’s hood. An elf hands Legolas Thorin’s sword and he inspects it.<br/>	“Echannen i vegil hen vin gondolin. Magannen nan gelydh,” he surmises. (This is an ancient elvish blade. Forged by my kin.)<br/>	He turns to Thorin with a stern look.<br/>	“Where did you get this,” he asks.<br/>	“It was given to me,” answers Thorin.<br/>	“Not just a thief, but a liar as well,” snaps Legolas, pointing the sword at Thorin. “Enwenno hain!” (Take them!)<br/>Legolas turns toward Kat and gently takes her by the arm, causing Thorin to glare at him.<br/>“Tolo ar nin,” he instructs. (Come with me.)<br/>As the group is led off by the elves, Kat realizes she doesn’t see Bilbo and begins to worry. She keeps repeating in her mind that he was probably just hiding from the elves, though she still can’t completely convince herself. They’re led over a bridge and into the Woodland Realm, where Kat looks around in slight awe. It was nothing like Rivendell, though it was still enchanting. After they pass through, Legolas addresses the guards of the gate.<br/>“Holo in ennyn,” he orders. (Close the gates.)<br/>He pauses along with Kat in the doorway, looking around as though he had heard something, before turning back and entering as the gates close. The company is led through the raised wooden walkways of the Woodland Realm and Kat notices that the entire place is built out of tree roots in a subterranean cavern.<br/>“Vanima,” she murmurs. (Beautiful.)<br/>“Amin weera,” responds Legolas. (I agree.)<br/>The dwarves are all led to cells, while Kat and Thorin are led in a different direction. Bofur, Bifur and Bombur all struggle to get to her as they’re shoved into their cells, calling after her as she’s led away. Their cries can be heard all the way to the throne room, where she and Thorin are brought before King Thranduil. Thorin is led to the center of the room while Legolas keeps Kat back toward the edge of the room, seemingly reluctant to put her under the scrutinizing eye of the king.<br/>“Some may imagine that a noble quest is at hand. A quest to reclaim a homeland and slay a dragon. I myself suspect a more prosaic motive: attempted burglary, or something of that ilk,” drones Thranduil. “You have found a way in. You seek that which would bestow upon you the right to rule: the King’s Jewel, the Arkenstone. It is precious to you beyond measure. I understand that. There are gems in the mountain that I too desire. White gems of pure starlight. I offer you my help.”<br/>“I am listening,” states Thorin.<br/>“I will let you go, if you but return what is mine,” offers Thranduil.<br/>Thorin turns and slowly starts walking away, glancing at Kat as he does so. The hand Legolas has around her arm tightens only slightly, prepared for Thorin to make any movements toward them.<br/>“A favor for a favor,” says Thorin.<br/>“You have my word. One king to another,” states Thranduil.<br/>Thorin stops walking at that. Still facing away from Thranduil, he speaks, his voice getting louder and louder as he does so.<br/>“I would not trust Thranduil, the great king, to honor his word should the end of all days be upon us,” shouts Thorin, spinning around and pointing at Thranduil. “You lack all honor! I’ve seen how you treat your friends. We came to you once, starving, homeless, seeking your help, but you turned your back. You turned away from the suffering of my people and the inferno that destroyed us! Imrid amrad ursul!” (Die a death of flames!)<br/>Kat jumps and moves back from the two at the shout. The hatred and anger in Thorin’s voice truly frighten her. Legolas, noticing her unease, seems to step slightly in front of her as though to shield her from the yelling. Thranduil leaps down from his throne and puts his face right in front of Thorin’s.<br/>“Do not talk to me of dragon fire. I know its wrath and ruin. I have faced the great serpents of the north,” snaps Thranduil, his face contorting into what appears to be burns and scars from his past encounters with dragons. His left eye is milky and unseeing, and he draws away, his face returning to normal. “I warned your grandfather of what his greed would summon, but he would not listen. You are just like him.”<br/>Thranduil returns to his throne and motions toward the guards, who grab Thorin and haul him toward the dungeons.<br/>“Stay here if you will, and rot. A hundred years is a mere blink in the life of an elf. I am patient. I can wait,” he taunts.<br/>Kat locks eyes with Thorin right before the doors to the throne room are shut in behind him, leaving her alone with the elves. Turning back to the throne, she sees the king looking directly at her in curiosity.<br/>“Who might this be,” he asks Legolas.<br/>“She was traveling with the dwarves. She has been cooperative and even knows how to speak elvish,” explains Legolas.<br/>Thranduil motions for her to come forward and Legolas gives her a light nudge. Moving toward the center of the room where Thorin had been only moments before, she looks up at the intimidating elf in front of her. He waves Legolas away and Legolas leaves the room hesitantly.<br/>“Le suilon,” greets Thranduil. (I greet you.)<br/>“Êl síla erin lû e-govaned vîn,” she responds quietly. (A star shines on the hour of our meeting.)<br/>“So she does,” states Thranduil, humor in his voice. “And why, pray tell, is a maiden like yourself with a group like this?”<br/>“I met Thorin near my mentor’s home and asked to join them in their travels,” she responds.<br/>His eyes grow cold as he leans forward and she looks down at her feet, frightened by the sudden change.<br/>“You do not speak the full truth. Are you their whore? What other reason would dwarves bring such a frail woman with them,” he questions.<br/>Her eyes snap up to look at him once again and her mouth opens in shock. She can feel her face and ears heating up as anger rises in her stomach.<br/>“How dare you! I am not a whore, nor am I some frail woman who needs protecting,” she snaps.<br/>He stands from his throne and walks down the steps, prowling around her like an animal stalking its prey. She stays staring at the throne, tense as she feels his eyes on her.<br/>“Perhaps you would be more willing to make a deal than your companion. I will let you all go, so long as you return a necklace to me. Or, you can stay and be a special guest at the feast tonight,” he offers.<br/>“It’s not my place to take what isn’t mine, nor do I wish to go against Thorin’s wishes, and I especially do not want to be a special guest to you or your kin. He has proven himself trustworthy to me, you have not. I have heard of your cowardice in the wake of Erebor’s attack, and I cannot condone leaving so many people to die when you could have helped. Ego, mibo orch,” she answers. (Go kiss an orc.)<br/>Suddenly, a hand is on her shoulder and she is spun around to face Thranduil. His face is contorted in anger and she barely sees the movement before his hand strikes her face. She cries out in surprise and falls to the ground, holding her eye that is beginning to swell slightly. He grabs her by the hair and pulls her to her feet while her head is still reeling, drawing another pained exclamation from her.<br/>“You know nothing of dragon fire, of the pain it brings,” he growls.<br/>“But I know of betrayal and the hatred it festers. And you, King Thranduil, have caused an entire race to harbor hatred toward you and your kin due to your cowardice and arrogance,” she snaps.<br/>He motions toward a guard and throws her to the ground in front of the guard. While Thranduil turns to go back to his throne, the guard begins kicking her as she lies there. She curls into a ball and attempts to hide herself as much as possible, but to no avail. After what feels like an eternity, the assault stops and she is once again pulled up by her hair. Her ribs scream in protest at the action and she tastes blood in her mouth.<br/>	“Have you thought better of your decision,” asks Thranduil.<br/>	“Nadorhaun. Amin feuya ten’ lle,” she growls, spitting blood onto the floor. (Cowardly dog. You disgust me.)<br/>	“Take her to a cell,” snaps Thranduil.<br/>	As she’s pulled from the room, she is led past Legolas, who gives her a sad look. She can hear the dwarves still yelling from their cells, especially Bofur and Bifur, and their yelling only escalates once they catch sight of her battered form. The guard approaches the cell across from Thorin’s and quite literally throws her into it, where she lands with a painful thump on the stone floor. She lies there for a moment, head still spinning from the blows it has sustained, before pushing herself into a sitting position with a groan.<br/>	“What did they do to you lass,” worries Balin.<br/>	“Guess I made him angry,” she wheezes. “Though that’s what he gets for calling me a whore.”<br/>	She can hear Bifur yell out a curse in Khuzdul and slam his hands onto the door of his cell. Thorin clenches his fists tightly and looks about to do the same.<br/>	“If it’s any consolation, I told him to go kiss an orc and that he disgusted me,” she chuckles.<br/>	A few of the dwarves laugh a bit at this and she can hear Fili and Kili cheering. She laughs a bit and winces, rubbing at her tender ribs. She lays her head against the wall by the door of the cell and gently plays with the bead in her braided hair. The feel of the cool metal against her fingers calms her down and she feels her eyes slip closed as the exhaustion from the forest finally catches up with her. The last thing she can remember thinking before darkness claims her is that she hopes the nightmares will let her rest.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Rivers and Lakes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The sound of her cell door opening wakes Kat up and she looks up, expecting to see Legolas or another guard, only to find her brother standing in front of her. He looks at her worriedly and helps her to her feet before helping the rest of the dwarves out of their cells. She sees Thorin already standing out of his and he supports her a bit as she waits out a dizzy spell. Some of the dwarves start to go off in one direction before Bilbo corrects them and leads them through the Woodland Realm with surprising ease. Eventually, they find themselves in a wine cellar with elves sleeping around a table, several empty bottles of wine in front of them.<br/>	“I don’t believe it; we’re in the cellars,” states Kili.<br/>	“You were supposed to be leading us out, not further in,” whispers Bofur.<br/>	“I know what I’m doing,” Bilbo snaps.<br/>	They sneak into a large room in which several barrels are stacked sideways down the middle of the room. All the barrels have one end open and Bilbo instructs them to climb inside.<br/>	“Are you mad? They’ll find us,” responds Dwalin.<br/>	“No, no, they won’t, I promise you. Please, please, you must trust me,” begs Bilbo.<br/>	A commotion is heard down the hall and everyone falls silent.<br/>	“Do as he says,” instructs Thorin.<br/>	Each of the dwarves climb into a barrel while Bilbo counts to make sure they’ve all been accounted for. He looks at Kat and motions toward the barrels, silently telling her to get in.<br/>	“Htoko ukon'h oneavt wek hto hfe ew aj. Ftuhogok chea'ko mpunninv, i'pp zo hurinv hto juquo fuch eah uj chea,” she whispers, making sure the others can’t understand her. (There aren't enough for the two of us. Whatever you're planning, I'll be taking the same way out as you.)<br/>	“What do we do now,” asks Bofur.<br/>	All of the dwarves stick their heads out of their barrels and watch as Bilbo and Kat walk toward a lever in the ground.<br/>	“Hold your breath,” instructs Bilbo.<br/>	“Hold my breath? What do you mean,” questions Bofur.<br/>	Kat helps Bilbo pull the lever and the part of the floor that the barrels were on tilts downward into an opening, where the barrels fall several feet into a river below. The dwarves yell as they fall and the barrels make loud thumping noises, surely alerting someone to their departure. Bilbo and Kat run to the door and stomp on the ground, trying to make it tip open again. Just as Kat’s sure they’re going to get caught, the floor tips and they fall into the river with a yell. The cold water is a shock to her system and she gasps as her head comes above water, looking around with wide eyes before managing to grab onto Kili’s barrel.<br/>	“Well done, Master Baggins,” congratulates Thorin.<br/>	Bilbo, half drowned just as Kat is, waves his hand in thanks and manages to splutter out a command for them to go. The dwarves paddle with their hands as the river pulls their barrels along, and they emerge into the sunlight.<br/>	“Hold on,” shouts Thorin.<br/>	Before Kat can wonder what for, she feels the barrel she’s holding onto plunge over a waterfall and through the rapids, traveling swiftly down the raging river. A horn can be heard just as they round a corner in the river and see a guardpost above them. One of the heavily armored elves pulls a lever, causing a heavy metal sluice gate to block the river. The dwarves in their barrels come to a stop at the gate, unable to float further. Kat tries to avoid being crushed as the barrels pile into each other when a guard is suddenly shot in the back with a black arrow. Orcs swarm over the guardpost, killing the elves, as more run from the bushes.<br/>	“Watch out! Those are orcs,” shouts Bofur.<br/>	“Gorid! Zib! Goridug,” shouts a huge, pale orc clad in armor and bones. (Slay them all!)<br/>	The orcs begin throwing themselves at the dwarves in their barrels. Bilbo manages to kill one with his sword, and Dwalin elbows another in the face. Seeing a sword fall from a dead elf, Kat snatches it from the rushing water and uses it to stab another orc through the chest. She feels the barrel she’s clinging to shift and looks to see Kili manage to get out of his barrel and run up the stairs toward the lever. Unarmed, he ducks as an orc swings at him.<br/>	“Kili,” shouts Dwalin.<br/>	Dwalin, who had also managed to grab a sword from one of the elves or orcs, throws it to Kili, who then fights his way to the top of the stairs. As Kili fights an orc, another one leaps up from behind him, raising its spear to stab him. Kat snatches a dagger from the water and throws it at the orc. It kills the orc and allows Kili to fight and kill his own opponent. As Kili reaches for the lever, an arrow embeds itself into his leg and he stops short. She can hear Fili yell for Kili as he groans in pain and strains to pull the lever. He falls over onto his back and Kat sees the armor clad orc string another arrow.<br/>	She can hear Thorin mutter Kili’s name and a wave of protective instinct surges through her. Without thinking, she reaches for the nearest thing she can find and wraps her hand around a rock the size of her fist. The rock flies through the air and strikes the orc right in the temple, causing it to lose its arrow as it snaps its head to look over at her. Suddenly, an arrow flies into the head of the orc that had leaped over to kill Kili. The armor clad orc and Kat turn to see Tauirel running through the bushes. She shoots another orc, then kills others with her knife.<br/>	“Gor’-ash! Gor golginul,” shouts the orc. (Kill her! Kill the She-Elf!)<br/>	Several orcs rush at Tauriel but Legolas and other elves appear from the bushes and shoot them down. As Tauriel, Legolas, and the other elves fight the orcs, Kili manages to grab the lever and pull it, opening the gate and letting the barrels through. Kili manages to slide himself off the ledge and into his empty barrel, breaking the shaft of the arrow off on the edge of the barrel with a cry of pain. The dwarves all plunge over a waterfall and continue floating down the rushing river.<br/>	The dwarves try to paddle and steer with their hands, but to no avail; the river is running too wild. As they come to a narrow part of the river, orcs on either side begin shooting arrows at them. An orc leaps at Thorin in his barrel but he manages to kill it with a sword he had grabbed earlier. The elves run after the orcs, shooting them. An orc jumps from an overhanging tree branch toward Balin, but Thorin throws his sword and pins the orc to the tree. As the orc drops its weapon, Thorin catches it while floating beneath him, and he throws it back to Bombur, who throws it to Nori, who throws it to Fili, who uses it to kill an orc. An orc leaps onto Dwalin’s barrel, only for Dwalin to headbutt it off and steal its axe. The dwarves see a low-hanging tree branch stretched across the river in front of them with several orcs on it.<br/>	“Cut the log,” shouts Thorin.<br/>	As he floats under it, Thorin hits it with his sword, then Bofur hits it with his weapon, and Dwalin hits it with his axe, breaking it and causing the orcs on it to fall into the river. Kat can see Bilbo manage to climb atop a floating barrel while she hangs on as tightly as possible to hers, trying to keep her head above water.<br/>	“Bombur,” shouts Dwalin.<br/>	Dwalin throws his axe to Bombur, who kills an orc that had just jumped onto his barrel. The orc’s spear ends up pinning it to an overhanging tree branch. The other end of the spear catches onto Bombur’s barrel and catapults it through the air and onto the riverbank, where the barrel rolls and tramples multitudes of orcs. The barrel flips through the air to the other side of the river, where it trample more orcs.<br/>	Suddenly, Kat feels something grab her ankle and she is submerged in the water. The current rushes far quicker below the surface and Kat quickly speeds ahead of the company, unable to get above the water to call for help. An orc grapples with her, both of them having lost their weapons. She struggles with all her strength and manages to free her arms. Reaching up, she gouges her fingers into the orc’s eyes and she feels it pull back from her slightly, but not completely let go of her. She feels something hard slam into her shoulder and clenches her teeth hard so she doesn’t lose her air. As it was, her lungs were starting to burn and black spots were dancing in her vision. She knows she has to get to air soon or the orc will be the least of her worries.<br/>	The orc yanks her head back by her hair and she uses her momentum to completely spin them around. This shakes the orc loose slightly and she manages to get her legs between them. Kicking him once, twice, three times, the orc loses his grip completely and the two fly apart from one another. She sees the orc hit a rock and stop moving, knowing he had been knocked out. Unfortunately, sending him flying had also sent her flying in the opposite direction and she tumbles around, unable to decipher which way was up and which way was down anymore. A sharp pain as her head cracks against a rock causes her to cry out, losing the rest of her air. Her body convulses as water rushes into her lungs, burning through her throat and chest, and her vision starts to tunnel. Using the last of her energy, she kicks against a stone and manages to breach the surface of the water, where the current was much more calm.<br/>	Pulling herself onto a slab of rock jutting out into the river, she purges the water from her stomach and begins coughing, her lungs trying to regain the air they had lost. Through ringing ears she can faintly hear the dwarves as they approach her spot and begin pulling themselves out of the water as well. All she can do is lie there and gasp for air, shivering as the water on her skin cools and shock begins to set in. She can feel someone begin to thump her on the back, causing another wave of water to flow from her stomach. After repeating this multiple times, she finally feels as though she can breathe again and looks up to see Oin kneeling next to her.<br/>	“Don’t worry lass, let it all out. You’re okay,” he soothes.<br/>	She slowly sits up and sees some of the dwarves bandaging Kili’s leg while the rest are staring at her in concern. Bilbo kneels next to her and brushes her wet hair from her face, hugging her. A pathetic noise escapes her as her shoulder flares up with pain from where she had hit the first rock, leading Bilbo to immediately pull back to see what was wrong. Rolling her shoulder, she feels something pop as the pain spikes and then begins to ease. She must have dislocated it.<br/>	“I’m fine. Help Kili,” she rasps to Oin.<br/>	While they bind Kili’s leg, some of the dwarves sit down and Ori kneels by the river to empty his boot of water. The dwarves then spot a man aiming an arrow at Ori and Dwalin, holding a branch, leaps in front of Ori. He raises the branch and begins to charge the man, but the man shoots his arrow and it embeds itself right in the middle of the branch between Dwalin’s hands. Kili raises a rock to throw but the man shoots the rock out of his hands as well.<br/>	“Do it again, and you’re dead,” announces the man.<br/>	“Wait please,” Kat rasps as loudly as she can.<br/>	The man looks over at her and his eyes narrow, glaring at the dwarves. She pushes herself weakly to her feet and steps closer, hands slightly raised to show she wasn’t a threat.<br/>	“Who did this to you,” the man asks her.<br/>	“Orcs. We were attacked, and my friend and I were injured,” she states, motioning toward Kili. “We’re no threat to you, I promise. We just need a little help. Please.”<br/>	Balin begins approaching in the same way Kat had, slowly and with hands held in the air. He looks behind the man and Kat notices a barge floating in the river.<br/>	“Excuse me, but, uh, you’re from Laketown, if I’m not mistaken? That barge over there, it wouldn’t be available for hire, by any chance,” asks Balin.<br/>The man lowers his bow and climbs aboard his barge as the dwarves approach.<br/>	“What makes you think I will help you,” he asks as he begins loading the barrels onto the boat.<br/>	“Those boots have seen better days. As has that coat. No doubt you have some hungry mouths to feed. How many bairns,” questions Balin.<br/>	“A boy and two girls,” answers the man.<br/>	“And your wife, I’d imagine she’s a beauty,” continues Balin.<br/>	“Aye. She was,” the man sighs.<br/>	“I’m sorry for your loss,” Kat offers.<br/>	“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-” starts Balin.<br/>	“Oh come on, come on, enough with the niceties,” interrupts Dwalin.<br/>	“What’s your hurry,” questions the man.<br/>	“What’s it to you,” snaps Dwalin.<br/>	“I would like to know who you are and what you are doing in these lands,” responds the man.<br/>	“We are simple merchants from the Blue Mountains journeying to see our kin in the Iron Hills,” answers Balin.<br/>	“Simple merchants, you say,” asks the man, looking at Kat.<br/>	“We’ll need food, supplies, weapons. Can you help us,” asks Thorin.<br/>	The man looks at the barrels and examines the various dents and nicks they received during the fight with the orcs.<br/>	“I know where these barrels came from,” he states.<br/>	“What of it,” questions Thorin.<br/>	“I don’t know what business you had with the elves, but I don’t think it ended well. No one enters Laketown but by leave of the Master. All his wealth comes from trade with the Woodland Realm. He will see you in irons before risking the wrath of King Thranduil,” he explains.<br/>	Kat looks at the man closely and sees defiance in his eyes, the same look that she had always had. She takes a few steps forward, ignoring the look Thorin was giving her, and stops him from untying his barge. With as much confidence as she can muster while being half drowned and trembling, she gives him a firm look and holds her head high.<br/>	“I’d wager that there are ways to enter the town unseen,” she states.<br/>	He raises an eyebrow at her and seems to be holding back a smile. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks down at her with the same firm look she was giving him.<br/>	“Aye. But for that, you will need a smuggler,” he answers.<br/>	“For which we will pay double, and I will be extremely grateful to find somewhere warm. The water was quite cold,” she responds.<br/>	He looks at her for another moment before smiling slightly and motioning for the dwarves to get aboard. He helps her onto the barge and hands her a thick blanket, which she gladly wraps herself in. Thorin and Balin give her proud looks and everyone sits down to divide up the money. Kat sits near the man, who she learns is named Bard, and asks him questions about his children and the town, learning about the way the Master was hated and how he was selfish beyond belief. Bard paddles them across the foggy lake, pushing aside ice and other small obstacles. A large stone formation appears out of the fog, startling the dwarves.<br/>	“Watch out,” calls Bofur.<br/>	Bard expertly poles the barge between the rock formations, which Kat sees to be ancient ruins.<br/>	“What are you trying to do, drown us,” questions Thorin.<br/>	“I was born and bred on these waters, Master Dwarf. If I wanted to drown you, I would not do it here,” responds Bard.<br/>	“Oh I have had enough of this lippy lakeman. I say we throw him over the side and be done with it,” growls Dwalin.<br/>	“Bard. His name is Bard,” snips Kat, glaring slightly at Dwalin.<br/>	“How do you know,” asks Bofur.<br/>	“Uh, I asked him,” she replies.<br/>	“I don’t care what he calls himself, I don’t like him,” continues Dwalin.<br/>	Kat glares at him again before huffing and turning away from them. She hears them arguing about the money and rolls her eyes, trying to ignore the rude way they talk about Bard. They didn’t even know him, how could they already dislike him? Granted, that’s exactly what they did with Kat and Bilbo too, so maybe that’s just how dwarves are. She’s broken from her thoughts when Bilbo coughs and gestures his head toward Bard, who is approaching the dwarves on their end of the barge.<br/>	“The money, quick, give it to me,” rushes Bard.<br/>	“We’ll pay you when we get our provisions, but not before,” states Thorin.<br/>	“If you value your freedom, you’ll do as I say. There are guards ahead,” replies Bard.<br/>	He helps hide the dwarves in the barrels they had arrived in, managing to squeeze Bilbo into one but feeling too uncomfortable to put a still half drowned Kat into a confined space. After some brief talking, a backstory was decided for her and she positions herself across from the barrels while Bard hops off and speaks to a man at the dock. She can hear the dwarves whispering to themselves as Bard talks to the man, eventually shaking his hand, before dead fish are poured into the barrels. Kat bites her lip to keep from laughing as they sail farther toward Laketown, while Bard quietly scolds the dwarves for speaking.<br/>	“Halt! Goods inspection. Papers, please. Oh, it’s you Bard,” calls the gatekeeper.<br/>	“Morning Percy,” greets Bard.<br/>	“Anything to declare,” asks Percy.<br/>	“Nothing, but that I am cold and tired, and ready to get my niece and I home,” responds Bard, handing over some papers.<br/>	“You and me both,” laughs Percy.<br/>	He takes the papers and goes into his office to stamp them, and Bard looks around warily.<br/>	“Here we are. All in order,” announces Percy.<br/>	As he holds out the papers to Bard, a man suddenly steps out of the shadows and grabs them. The man looks greasy and like a weasel, causing Kat to scrunch up her nose in disdain.<br/>	“Not so fast. Consignment of empty barrels from the Woodland Realm. Only, they’re not empty, are they Bard? If I recall correctly, you’re licensed as a bargeman, not a fisherman,” sneers the weasel.<br/>	As he says this, he picks up one of the fish from a barrel and holds it up to Bard. Kat holds in a gasp as she sees Bombur’s eyes looking up from the gap where the fish had been.<br/>	“That’s none of your business,” retorts Bard.<br/>	“Wrong. It’s the Master’s business, which makes it my business,” the weasel responds.<br/>	“Oh come on, Alfrid, have a heart. People need to eat,” states Bard.<br/>	“These fish are illegal. Empty the barrels over the side,” orders Alfrid.<br/>	The soldiers that had been waiting behind Alfrid begin tipping the barrels over and letting the fish fall into the canal. Anxiety wells in Kat’s stomach and she frantically looks at Bard.<br/>	“Folk in this town are struggling. Times are hard. Food is scarce,” rushes Bard.<br/>	“That’s not my problem,” responds Alfrid.<br/>	“And when the people hear the Master is dumping fish back in the lake, when the rioting starts, will it be your problem then,” blurts Kat.<br/>	Alfrid turns to look at her and she resists the urge to shutter as his greasy eyes look her up and down. Ordering the soldiers to stop, he slowly walks toward her.<br/>	“And who might this be? Obviously not a child, though you’re as short as one. I think I would remember such a beautiful face in my town, however,” flirts Alfrid.<br/>	“That is my niece. She’s come to visit with her cousins,” lies Bard.<br/>	“As for my height, I was injured when I was born and it stunted my growth. I’m actually… twenty-four,” informs Kat, quickly making up a believable human age.<br/>	“When you get tired of living in filth with your uncle, you should pay me a visit. Your company would be wonderful,” propositions Alfrid.<br/>	Clenching her teeth to keep from either snapping at him or throwing up, Kat forces a smile onto her face and nods at him. As he walks away, Percy orders for the gate to be raised and Bard begins to pole his barge through. As he passes, Alfrid turns around and shouts to him.<br/>	“The Master has his eye on you; you’d do well to remember. We know where you live,” he threatens.<br/>	“It’s a small town Alfrid; everyone knows where everyone lives,” responds Bard.<br/>	Kat leans next to the barrels and rubs her arms, shuddering slightly.<br/>	“I feel disgusting now. I could’ve punched him,” she states.<br/>	Bard eventually docks his barge and, after looking around, knocks over one of the barrels. A dwarf falls out along with a pile of fish, and Bard continues knocking over the barrels. He reaches for Dwalin’s but Dwalin pokes his head up through the fish.<br/>	“Get your hands off me,” he growls.<br/>	The remaining dwarves and Bilbo struggle out of their barrels, looking greasy and slimy from the fish. Bofur questions if Kat is alright after hearing what Alfrid had said to her and she nods, helping the others up. The dock keeper looks on in shock and Bard slips him a coin.<br/>	“You didn’t see them. They were never here. The fish you can have for nothing,” he tells the man before leading the company away. “Follow me.”<br/>	As they follow him through the town, a young boy runs up to the group, looking up at Bard.<br/>	“Da! Our house, it’s being watched,” he announces.<br/>	Bard begins to hatch a plan with Thorin while Kat introduces herself to his son. Bard, Bain and Kat walk back to their house and Kat keeps a close eye out for anything suspicious. As they walk, a fisherman in a boat sees them and drops his eyepatch over one eye, then knocks his staff on a wall nearby. Upon this signal, two boys run from the wall, and one knocks over a contraption which causes a hammer to hit a bell. At this, another man lights a match to light his pipe. He turns and looks at two men in a fishing boat right next to Bard’s house, and they nod and switch their poles to the opposite sides of the boat than before. They do this just as the trio get to the house and enter through the door. Just before Bard enters, he tosses an apple to one of the fishermen.<br/>	“You can tell the Master that I’m done for the day,” he calls.<br/>	Inside the house, Bard is greeted by two girls, who Kat assumes are his daughters.<br/>	“Da! Where have you been,” asks Tilda.<br/>	“Father! There you are. I was worried,” states Sigrid.<br/>	Both daughters run to their father and hug him. Bard then hands his bag to Sigrid.<br/>	“Here’s something to eat. Bain, get them in,” instructs Bard.<br/>	“I can help if you’d like,” offers Kat.<br/>	As Bain runs off to get the dwarves, the two girls finally notice Kat standing in the doorway. The three introduce themselves to one another while dwarves begin piling out of the bathroom.<br/>	“Da… why are there dwarves climbing out of our toilet,” asks Sigrid.<br/>	“Will they bring us luck,” questions Tilda, causing Kat to laugh.<br/>	“I highly doubt that,” Kat chuckles.<br/>	Kat goes to help Sigrid in the kitchen while Tilda passes out blankets to the dwarves, their wet things lying in front of the fire to dry. Tilda had let Kat borrow one of her dresses while her wet clothes dried, leaving Kat thankful for the warm and dry clothes. At Tilda’s request, Kat begins telling the two stories from the Shire and about when she was younger. She tells them stories about a king who could turn things to gold simply by touching them, a shape-shifting tricky spider, a talking crow with many secrets, and other stories she was told as a young hobbit. The two girls become captivated by the words, causing Kat to smile as she changes her voice to fit the different people in the stories. Glancing over at the dwarves, she sees Thorin looking at her and smiles at him before going back to the story.<br/>	At one point, Bard leaves the house for a moment, returning with a large package. Kat excuses herself from the two girls and joins the dwarves as they stand around the table he had laid the package on. He loosens the wrappings and reveals a couple of hand made weapons. The dwarves look at them in shock, then pick up the weapons and look at them in disgust.<br/>	“What is this,” questions Thorin.<br/>	“Pike-hook. Made from an old harpoon,” answers Bard.<br/>	“And this,” asks Kili.<br/>	“A crowbill, we call it, fashioned from a smithy’s hammer. It’s heavy in the hand, I grant, but in defense of your life, these will serve you better than none,” explains Bard.<br/>	“We paid you for weapons. Iron-forged swords and axes,” states Gloin.<br/>	“It’s a joke,” exclaims Bofur.<br/>	Bofur throws his weapon back on the table and the other dwarves follow suit.<br/>	“You won’t find better outside the city armory. All iron-forged weapons are held there under lock at key,” Bard tells them.<br/>	Thorin and Dwalin look at each other out of the corners of their eyes and Kat can immediately tell that they’re hatching a plan. Balin must be able to tell that as well, getting Thorin’s attention by calling his name. Bard looks up at the mention of the name Thorin, as if the name sounds familiar to him, and Kat gives him a look.<br/>	“Why not take what’s been offered and go? I’ve made do with less; so have you. I say we leave now,” suggests Balin.<br/>	“You’re not going anywhere,” states Bard.<br/>	“What did you say,” growls Dwalin.<br/>	“There’s spies watching this house and probably every dock and wharf in the town. You must wait till nightfall,” responds Bard.<br/>	Hearing this, the dwarves begin to settle down. Kili, leaning on a pole, looks like he’s in pain and he slowly slides down the pole to sit on a couch. Wincing, he examines the bandage on his leg while making sure no one is looking, not seeing Kat watching warily. She had seen the dwarves get hurt in many ways, and none of them had ever reacted like this to such a seemingly small wound.<br/>	Bard leaves and Kat goes back to telling the girls stories to pass the time. After a while of sitting there, the dwarves begin to put their now dry clothes back on, prompting Kat to do the same. Sigrid helps her upon seeing her bruised ribs and shoulder, much to Kat’s appreciation. Upon entering the room, she’s called over by Thorin, who explains their plan to raid the weapon’s storage. They leave with Bain trying to stop them and make their way to the armory, hiding from watchmen. They hide behind a boat as two watchmen walk by.<br/>	“As soon as we have the weapons, we make straight for the mountain. Go, go,” instructs Thorin.<br/>	With the watchmen gone, Thorin points to Nori, who gets a running start and runs up a pyramid of dwarves who have pressed themselves against the walls of the city armory. He is able to get high enough that he can reach a second floor window and dive through. Bilbo and Kat do the same thing and, soon, several dwarves are in the armory. They begin collecting the weapons stored there and Kat stays near Kili, seeing him struggle under a load of several different weapons.<br/>	“You all right,” Thorin asks him.<br/>	“I can manage. Let’s just get out of here,” responds Kili.<br/>	Thorin looks at Kili, then lays another sword on the pile he’s holding. Kili begins walking down the stairs, but his wounded leg gives way and he falls with a cry. The weapons make a terrible clanging noise and the dwarves look around warily. Kat runs down the stairs to help Kili, only to have someone grab her and hold a dagger to her throat. She sees Kili is in the same position and he looks sadly at Thorin. The group is led to the Master’s mansion, multitudes of townspeople following behind. A soldier grips her injured shoulder hard, causing her to growl a bit from the pain.<br/>	“Watch the shoulder,” she snaps.<br/>	“Get off of me,” growls Dwalin.<br/>	As the guards arrange the group in the town square, the doors of the mansion swing open and the Master storms out, still putting on his coat.<br/>	“What is the meaning of this,” he orders.<br/>	“We caught ‘em stealing weapons, sire,” explains a guard.<br/>	“Ah. Enemies of the state then,” announces the Master.<br/>	“This is a bunch of mercenaries if ever there was, sire,” agrees Alfrid.<br/>	“Hold your tongue. You do not know to whom you speak. This is no common criminal; this is Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thror,” states Dwalin.<br/>	Dwalin gestures at Thorin and Thorin steps forward, the crowd murmuring in amazement.<br/>	“We are the dwarves of Erebor,” announces Thorin, causing more whispers of shock from the crowd. “We have come to reclaim our homeland. I remember this town and the great days of old. Fleets of boats lay at harbor, filled with silks and fine gems. This was no forsaken town on a lake! This was the center of all trade in the north. I would see those days return. I would relight the great forges of the dwarves and send wealth and riches flowing once more from the halls of Erebor!”<br/>	The people cheer and clap, and the Master looks on, calculating. Suddenly, a voice calls out over the crowd and Bard strides forward.<br/>	“Death! That is what you will bring upon us. Dragon fire and ruin. If you awaken that beast, it will destroy us all,” he accuses.<br/>	“You can listen to this naysayer, but I promise you this; if we succeed, all will share in the wealth of the mountain. You will have enough gold to rebuild Esgaroth ten times over,” states Thorin.<br/>	The people shout in excitement and they applaud. The Master looks on, smiling and nodding at this turn of events. Kat looks at Bard, feeling apprehension stir in her stomach. Maybe he was right? The dwarves wouldn’t be the only ones harmed if they woke the dragon.<br/>	“All of you! Listen to me! You must listen! Have you forgotten what happened to Dale,” cries Bard, leading the people to quiet down. “Have you forgotten those who died in the firestorm? And for what purpose? The blind ambition of a mountain king so riven by greed, he could not see beyond his own desire!”<br/>	As Bard and Thorin stare at each other angrily, the crowd gets louder, but the Master steps forth. Kat stays tense, waiting for anyone to make any sudden movements toward one another. <br/>	“Now, now, we must not, any of us, be too quick to lay blame. Let us not forget that it was Girion, Lord of Dale, your ancestor, who failed to kill the beast,” accuses the Master.<br/>	The Master points accusingly at Bard, and the crowd begins to clammer. As Bard looks away, Thorin looks at him in shock and anger.<br/>	“It’s true, sire. We all know the story: arrow after arrow he shot, each one missing its mark,” sneers Alfrid.<br/>	Kat glares at the two snakes while Bard looks around as the crowd yells angrily at him. He then strides forward and speaks to Thorin earnestly.<br/>	“You have no right, no right to enter that mountain,” he states.<br/>	“I have the only right,” growls Thorin before turning to face the Master. “I speak to the Master of the men of the lake. Will you see the prophecy fulfilled? Will you share in the great wealth of our people? What say you?”<br/>	“I say unto you… welcome! Welcome and thrice welcome, King under the mountain,” says the Master.<br/>	He opens his arms in welcome and the crowd erupts in cheers. Kat looks sadly at Bard, who looks on silently, and goes to rest a hand on his arm. Thorin climbs up a few steps and turns to face the audience. The people hug each other in excitement and joy, while Thorin and Bard stare at each other.<br/>	“You needn’t put yourself in such danger for the stubborn pride of a dwarf,” says Bard.<br/>	Kat looks over at Thorin, seeing him staring intently at her from his spot by the Master. His eyes seem slightly cold, seemingly more so as they get closer to the mountain.<br/>	“I have to make sure he doesn’t get himself or the others hurt. Something is ailing him, and I plan to find out what,” she responds.<br/>	“I wish you the best of luck,” states Bard.<br/>	He turns and begins walking away, Kat staring after him sadly.<br/>	“You as well,” she murmurs, turning and following the dwarves.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The Belly Of The Beast</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm going to be leaving for Vegas in three days, so I probably won't be able to post for awhile. We'll be gone for a week and then we're getting a dog when we get back so we're going to be a little busy. But don't worry, I'll get back to uploading as soon as I can!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning Kat can’t help the bad feeling in her stomach as she plays with the bead in her hair. The people all crowd along the sides of the main channel as a boat is loaded with supplies for the company to take to the mountain. Looking around, Kat can’t find Bofur anywhere and begins to worry more. Bilbo, sensing his sister’s discomfort, decides to bring it to Thorin’s attention.<br/>	“You do know we’re one short; where’s Bofur,” he asks.<br/>	“If he’s not here, we leave him behind,” announces Thorin.<br/>	Balin seems to notice Kat’s hesitation and rests a hand on her shoulder in comfort.<br/>	“We have to, if we’re to find the door before nightfall. We can risk no more delays,” he explains.<br/>	They march along the pier and the company begins to board the boat. They are fully decked out in armor and regal clothing given by the Master. As she waits in the boat, Kat sees Thorin stop Kili before he can board the ship.<br/>	“Not you. We must travel with speed, you will slow us down,” states Thorin.<br/>	Kili smiles, thinking Thorin is joking, and Kat’s heart drops.<br/>	“What are you talking about? I’m coming with you,” says Kili.<br/>	“No,” orders Thorin.<br/>	Fili, sitting next to Kat already in the boat, turns and looks at Thorin and his brother.<br/>	“I’m going to be there when that door is opened, when we first look upon the halls of our fathers, Thorin,” argues Kili.<br/>	“Kili, stay here. Rest. Join us when you’re healed,” says Thorin.<br/>	Thorin lays his hand on Kili’s shoulder and smiles at him, but Kili just looks shocked and betrayed. Thorin turns to board the boat and Kili turns away. Oin gets out of the boat and goes toward Kili.<br/>	“I’ll stay with the lad. My duty lies with the wounded,” announces Oin.<br/>	“Uncle, we grew up on the tales of the mountain. Tales you told us. You can’t take that away from him,” emplores Fili. “I will carry him, if I must!”<br/>	“One day you will be king, and you will understand. I cannot risk the fate of this quest for the sake of one dwarf, not even my own kin,” explains Thorin.<br/>	Fili looks at Kili, then steps out of the boat and Thorin tries to stop him.<br/>	“Fili, don’t be a fool. You belong with the company,” argues Thorin.<br/>	“I belong with my brother,” snaps Fili.<br/>	He pulls away from Thorin and goes to join Kili and Oin. The musicians of Laketown play their instruments as the Master climbs up to a raised platform. He waves and the people cheer and clap. The Master smiles and waves to the dwarves in the boat as they pull into the canal and begin to paddle away. Kili looks on miserably from the dock as the dwarves in the boat smile, wave and bow at the cheering people. Kat manages to catch a glimpse of Bofur arriving at the dock before they’re out of sight once again.<br/>	They eventually make it across the lake and begin climbing the foothills of the mountain. At one point, Thorin, recognizing the landscape, runs atop an embankment overlooking a valley. As the others join him, they look at the other end of the valley and see the ruins of Dale.<br/>	“What is this place,” asks Bilbo.<br/>	“It was once the city of Dale. Now it is a ruin. The desolation of Smaug,” answers Balin.<br/>	“The sun will soon reach midday; let’s find the hidden door into the mountain before it sets. This way,” announces Thorin.<br/>	“Wait… is this the overlook? Gandalf said to meet him here. On no account were we-” starts Bilbo.<br/>	“Do you see him? We have no time to wait upon the wizard. We’re on our own,” interrupts Thorin, turning and walking away. “Come.”<br/>	The other dwarves follow him while Bilbo looks back at the city, conflicted. Kat puts a hand on his shoulder and gives him a sympathetic look. As the day progresses, they continue scouring the sides of the mountain, trying to find the secret entrance. Bilbo, who decided to search alongside Kat, sees a massive statue of a dwarf carved into the mountain. Looking closely, the two hobbits notice a set of stairs built into the statue.<br/>	“Up here,” calls Bilbo.<br/>	“You have keen eyes, Master Baggins,” compliments Thorin.<br/>	They painstakingly make their way up the steep and treacherous steps and find a little rock walled clearing in the side of the mountain. Thorin runs into the clearing, looking for the door, as the rest of the company enters.<br/>	“Let all those who doubted us rue this day,” announces Thorin, holding up the key to the cheers of the others.<br/>	“Right. We have our key, which means that somewhere, there is a keyhole,” states Dwalin.<br/>	He begins exploring the walls of the clearing with his fingers, looking for a keyhole. Thorin walks to the edge of the clearing and looks out at the setting sun. As the sun gets lower and lower on the horizon and nothing changes on the wall, Thorin begins to get frantic. He calls for Nori to help Dwalin and Nori runs to the wall. He begins tapping it in different places with a spoon while holding his ear to a cup held against the wall. Meanwhile, Dwalin strains and pushes against the wall and the sun gets lower.<br/>	“We’re losing the light,” announces Thorin.<br/>	“Come on,” growls Dwalin as he begins kicking the wall.<br/>	“Be quiet! I can’t hear when you’re thumping,” scolds Nori.<br/>	“I can’t find it… it’s not here! It’s not here,” worries Dwalin.<br/>	As the sun gets lower to disappearing, Thorin frantically gestures to the other dwarves and demands for them to break it down. Dwalin, Gloin and Bifur smash at the wall with their weapons, to no avail.<br/>	“It’s no good! The door’s sealed. It can’t be opened by force. Powerful magic on it,” says Balin.<br/>	The dwarves hitting the door drop their weapons in disappointment and exhaustion, and the sun disappears behind distant mountains. Thorin stumbles forward and examines the old map, reading it aloud. He holds his arms open in disbelief while the other dwarves mutter in disappointment and anger.<br/>	“What did we miss,” questions Thorin, looking at Balin tearfully. “What did we miss Balin?”<br/>	“We’ve lost the light. There’s no more to be done. We had but one chance,” sighs Balin. “Come away. It’s… it’s over.”<br/>“Wait a minute,” cries Bilbo as the dwarves begin leaving the clearing. “Where are they going? You can’t give up now!”<br/>“He’s right. There has to be a way into the mountain! We haven’t come this far just to give up,” agrees Kat.<br/>Bilbo looks beseechingly at Thorin, but Thorin just turns away. He holds up his key and looks at it, then drops it to the ground, where it clatters.<br/>“Thorin please,” breathes Kat.<br/>“You can’t give up now,” murmurs Bilbo.<br/>Thorin only throws the map at Bilbo’s chest and walks past him. The dwarves begin descending down the stairs, but Bilbo and Kat stay in the clearing. He recites the riddle from the map to himself while gesturing with his hands. Kat approaches the wall and looks at it more closely.<br/>“The setting sun… and the last light of Durin’s Day will shine. The last light. Last light…,” mutters Bilbo.<br/>He turns away from the wall, thinking hard and muttering to himself. Kat hadn’t seen him focus so hard on a problem since they were children playing riddle games. With a thought, he looks up and sees the clouds move aside to reveal the moon. He looks at it in wonder and notices that it illuminates the clearing. Suddenly, Kat notices a thrush hitting a snail against the grey wall.<br/>“Bilbo. Bilbo look, it’s a thrush,” she whispers.<br/>Bilbo turns and looks at the small bird just as the moonlight hits the wall. As the thrush flies away, Bilbo laughs with relief and points at the wall.<br/>“The last light,” he laughs.<br/>Kat turns and sees the moonlight illuminate a keyhole in the rock. Bilbo gasps in surprise and Kat immediately yells for Thorin. She runs over to the stairs but sees no sign of the dwarves, prompting her to call for Thorin again with more urgency. She even yells for Bifur and Bombur, the weight of their family bead in her hair reminding her of how happy they’ll be.<br/>“The keyhole! Come back! Come back! It’s the light of the moon, the last moon of autumn,” cries Bilbo before looking at the ground. “Where’s the- where’s the key? Where’s the- it was here… but it was here, it was here! It was just…”<br/>Bilbo is looking frantically around on the ground in the clearing for the key when suddenly, his foot hits it and it goes flying. Kat lunges for it and manages to grab it right before it falls off the side of the mountain, almost falling over the edge herself. She clutches it tightly to her chest before sitting up, seeing Thorin and the others rushing toward her.<br/>“Caught it,” she chuckles.<br/>Thorin carefully helps her up and she hands him the key with a smile. He inserts the key into the keyhole and turns it, and mechanisms can be heard turning behind the rock. He pushes against the wall and a previously unseen door opens into the mountain. The seams of the door were completely invisible earlier, and the door opens into a tunnel going into the mountain. The dwarves look on in awe as Thorin stands on the threshold.<br/>“Erebor,” murmurs Thorin.<br/>“Thorin,” breathes Balin.<br/>Balin chokes up and Thorin puts a hand on his shoulder. Bifur and Bombur step up behind Kat and Bifur puts an arm around her shoulder. Thorin then steps into the mountain.<br/>“I know these walls… these walls, this stone. You remember it, Balin. Chambers filled with golden light,” reminisces Thorin.<br/>As he says this, Thorin runs his hands over the walls, lost in memory and Balin steps into the tunnel.<br/>“I remember,” agrees Balin.<br/>The rest of the company slowly and reverently enters the mountain. Inside, Nori points at a carving in the wall above the door; it is of the throne of Erebor, with the Arkenstone above it, sending out rays of light in every direction. Gloin reads the inscription on the carving.<br/>“Herein lies the seventh kingdom of Durin’s Folk. May the heart of the mountain unite all dwarves in defense of this home,” he reads.<br/>As Bilbo and Kat look at the carving in interest and curiosity, Balin takes pity on them and explains what it is.<br/>“The throne of the king,” he explains.<br/>“Oh. And what’s that above it,” questions Bilbo.<br/>“The Arkenstone,” replies Balin.<br/>“Arkenstone… what’s that,” asks Kat.<br/>“That is why you are here Bilbo,” announces Thorin.<br/>All the dwarves look at Bilbo and he looks bewildered, but resolute. Balin leads Kat and Bilbo into a tunnel leading to the interior of the mountain.<br/>“You want me to find a jewel,” asks Bilbo.<br/>“A large white jewel, yes,” answers Balin.<br/>“That’s it? There’s bound to be more jewels in a dragon’s horde,” states Kat.<br/>“There is only one Arkenstone. You’ll know it when you see it. Lass, are you sure you won’t come back with me,” asks Balin.<br/>“I’m staying with my brother. I won’t let him do something like this on his own. We’re a team,” responds Kat.<br/>Balin nods and begins to walk down the tunnel, but then pauses.<br/>“In truth, lad, I do not know what you will find down there. You needn’t go if you don’t want to, there’s no dishonor in turning back,” he tells Bilbo.<br/>“No, Balin, I promised I would do this, and I think I must try,” answers Bilbo.<br/>“Besides, Smaug has never dealt with a hobbit sister’s wrath before, should he try anything with my brother,” jokes Kat.<br/>Balin looks at the two, then begins to chuckle appreciatively.<br/>“It never ceases to amaze me,” he chuckles.<br/>“What’s that,” asks Bilbo.<br/>“The courage of hobbits. Go now with as much luck as you can muster,” answers Balin.<br/>They nod at each other and the two hobbits proceed down the tunnel while Balin turns back.<br/>“Oh, and Bilbo… if there is, in fact, a live dragon down there, don’t waken it,” warns Balin.<br/>Bilbo and Kat exchange worried looks, but nod. They sneak toward the center of the mountain and eventually reach a large doorway into a massive hall.<br/>“Hello,” whispers Bilbo.<br/>He knocks quietly on the wall beside him, but the sound is intensified loudly as it echoes, and they jump and press themselves against the wall in shock. Seeing no reaction to the noise, they walk out into the hall on an elevated walkway.<br/>“You’re not at home. Not at home. Good. Good, good, good,” breathes Bilbo.<br/>“You hope if you keep talking,” hisses Kat.<br/>They suddenly stop walking and their mouths open in shock. Mountains of gold, jewels, weapons, cups, and all sorts of treasure piled dozens of feet high all throughout the massive hall glitter in the dim lighting. They climb down the stairs and begin walking atop the treasure. Even while trying to be quiet, the coins and jewels beneath their feet make quite a bit of noise. Bilbo finds a large white jewel and examines it. Deciding that it’s not the Arkenstone, he carelessly throws it aside, causing the two to jump when it clatters and makes a lot of noise. He shushes it before they continue to look around.<br/>“Arkenstone, Arkenstone… a large, white jewel. Very helpful,” he murmurs.<br/>“I hope this thing is at least deaf,” whispers Kat.<br/>Climbing up another mountain of gold, Bilbo picks up a golden cup, which starts a small avalanche of coins. They look up only to see the coins falling away to reveal Smaug’s eye, which is luckily still shut. The two quickly jump behind cover, Kat sliding a little ways away on the coins, and wait. All is silent, and it seems like Smaug is still asleep. Suddenly, Smaug snorts, and the treasure around his nose falls away. From her spot closer to the exit, Kat can see Bilbo slowly making his way down the pile of gold before stopping, realizing that Smaug’s body is buried in a large circle around where he is standing. The gold all along Smaug’s body begins to ripple as he awakens and Kat’s breath catches in her throat as he begins to raise his head. As Smaug opens his eye, Bilbo runs and dives behind a pile of gold, out of sight from Kat. As Smaug’s eye looks around, Kat clings to her purchase, hoping the coins below her don’t shift and cause her to fall.<br/>“Well, thief, I smell you. I hear your breath. I feel your air. Where are you,” taunts Smaug.<br/>The dark tone of his voice makes Kat shudder and a coin rolls down from where she stands. Smaug turns his head to look in her direction when suddenly coins begin dislodging while she can only assume Bilbo begins to run away. Smaug follows rapidly and Kat takes the opportunity to duck behind a pillar near a staircase.<br/>“Come now, don’t be shy. Step into the light. Mmm, there is something about you, something you carry. Something made of gold but far more precious,” states Smaug.<br/>To Kat’s horror, Bilbo suddenly becomes visible directly in front of the beast and Kat gasps quietly.<br/>“There you are, thief in the shadows. There is another one as well. Come out dear girl,” calls Smaug.<br/>Kat steps out from behind the pillar with shaky steps, staring directly at Bilbo in fear.<br/>“We did not come to steal from you, oh Smaug the unassessably wealthy. We merely wanted to gaze upon your magnificence, to see if you really were as great as the old tales say. I did not believe them, but my sister did and wanted to prove it to me,” stammers Bilbo.<br/>Hearing this, Smaug stomps several yards away so he is directly between the two hobbits and draws himself up so his entire body is visible. He is a massive dragon with two back legs, two massive bat-like wings with claws, and both his neck and tail are incredibly long. His head alone is bigger than all of Bag End combined.<br/>“And do you now,” roars Smaug.<br/>“Truly, the tales and songs fall utterly short of your enormity, oh Smaug the stupendous,” states Bilbo.<br/>“You are truly as magnificent as the tales say,” agrees Kat timidly.<br/>“Do you think flattery will keep you alive,” questions Smaug.<br/>“No- no. no,” stutters Bilbo.<br/>“No indeed. You seem familiar with my name, but I don’t remember smelling your kind before. Who are you, and where do you come from, may I ask,” asks Smaug.<br/>Smaug snakes his head closer to Bilbo as he asks this, but also stares at Kat as he does so. Bilbo opens his mouth to speak but seems to see something off to the side. Flickering her eyes, Kat sees that it is the Arkenstone; a small, white gem glowing with an unnatural light, buried under a layer of coins.<br/>“W-we come from under the hill,” answers Kat, drawing Smaug’s attention.<br/>“Underhill,” repeats Smaug.<br/>Bilbo and Kat nod and sneak another peek at the Arkenstone. It’s not far away from Bilbo, if Kat could only distract Smaug.<br/>“And under hills and over hills my path has led. And, and, through the air. I am he who walks unseen,” announces Bilbo.<br/>“Impressive. What else do you claim to be,” questions Smaug.<br/>Smaug snakes his head forward until his teeth are inches from Bilbo’s face. As Smaug exhales, Kat can see Bilbo grimace.<br/>“I am… luck-wearer. Riddle-maker,” lists Bilbo.<br/>“Lovely titles. Go on,” encourages Smaug.<br/>“Barrel-rider,” states Kat.<br/>Smaug looks over at her and Bilbo shifts a little closer to the Arkenstone.<br/>“Barrels? Now that is interesting. And what about your little dwarf friends? Where are they hiding,” asks Smaug.<br/>“Dw-Dwarves? No, no, no dwarves here. You’ve got that all wrong,” stutters Bilbo.<br/>“Oh, I don’t think so, barrel-rider. They sent you in here to do their dirty work while they skulk about outside,” replies Smaug.<br/>“Truly, you are mistaken, oh Smaug, chiefest and greatest of calamities,” assures Bilbo.<br/>“You have nice manners… for a thief and a liar! I see the bead in your sister’s hair,” states Smaug, causing Kat to raise her hand up to her bead. “I know the smell and taste of dwarf. No one better. It is the gold! They are drawn to treasure like flies to dead flesh.”<br/>	As Smaug stomps about, his claws knock the Arkenstone away from where it had been and Kat gasps. The Arkenstone bounces down the mountain and Bilbo runs after it.<br/>“Did you think I did not know this day would come, when a pack of canting dwarves would come crawling back to the mountain,” bellows Smaug.<br/>Bilbo trips and slides down the gold. Smaug follows after him, knocking over a massive stone pillar in his rage, which falls right toward Kat. With a scream, Kat dives out of the way and narrowly avoids being crushed. Hurrying to her feet, she quickly finds more cover as Smaug continues stomping through the mountain.<br/>“The king under the mountain is dead. I took his throne,” rants Smaug.<br/>Smaug looks for Bilbo and Bilbo bursts out of a pile of gold beneath Smaug’s claw. Bilbo runs down a staircase, and leaps off the side as Smaug’s head swings at him. Kat scrambles toward her brother as best she can while avoiding the dragon.<br/>“I ate his people like a wolf among sheep,” continues Smaug.<br/>As the Arkenstone bounces rapidly down the mountain of gold, Bilbo slides rapidly after it with Smaug in pursuit.<br/>“I kill where I wish, when I wish. My armor is iron,” boasts Smaug.<br/>The Arkenstone and Bilbo slide under a covered stone structure and Smaug opens his wings and glides down to land on top of it.<br/>“No blade can pierce me,” roars Smaug. “It’s Oakenshield. That filthy dwarvish usurper! He sent you in here for the Arkenstone, didn’t he?”<br/>“No, no, no. I don’t know what you’re talking about,” replies Bilbo.<br/>Bilbo starts to sneak over to the Arkenstone, but is forced to hide behind a pillar as Smaug looks beneath the structure. Kat slips and nearly falls down a pile of coins as she dives behind them for cover.<br/>“Don’t bother denying it. I guessed his foul purpose some time ago. But it matters not. Oakenshield’s quest will fail. The darkness is coming, it will spread to every corner of the land,” states Smaug. “You have been used, thief in the shadows. And you, my dear, did you really think dwarves would bring you in as family? You were only ever a means to an end. The coward Oakenshield has weighed the value of your lives and found it worth nothing.”<br/>“You’re lying,” cries Kat.<br/>“What did he promise you? A share of the treasure? As if it was his to give. I will not part with a single coin. Not one piece of it,” responds Smaug.<br/>Bilbo, hearing that Smaug is on top of the structure and paying attention to Kat’s direction, sees the Arkenstone lying a few feet away from the structure and makes a run for it. Smaug sees him and whips his tail, sending Bilbo, the Arkenstone, and gold flying. Bilbo tumbles and lands against a pillar.<br/>“Bilbo,” screams Kat.<br/>“My teeth are swords. My claws are spears. My wings are a hurricane,” roars Smaug.<br/>Surely the dwarves could hear the struggle, so why were they not trying to help them? Where was Thorin? Bilbo whispers something to himself and Smaug shouts at him to repeat himself.<br/>“Uh, uh, I was just saying your reputation precedes you, oh Smaug the tyrannical. Truly, you have no equal on this earth,” states Bilbo.<br/>As Bilbo speaks, he slowly backs up until he is standing in a bare, open spot, and Smaug faces him. As he finishes speaking, Bilbo looks down and sees the Arkenstone lying a few feet away from him and he gazes at it.<br/>“I am almost tempted to let you take it, if only to see Oakenshield suffer, watch it destroy him, watch it corrupt his heart and drive him mad,” sneers Smaug.<br/>Bilbo and Smaug stare at one another for one heartstopping moment, before Smaug begins to rear his head.<br/>“But I think not. I think our little game ends here. So tell me, thieves, how do you choose to die,” asks Smaug.<br/>His chest glows with the light of his fire and his head streaks forward, jaws open, to eat Bilbo. Kat lets out an ear piercing scream as Bilbo disappears. Angrily, Smaug raises his head again, and the glow from his chest travels up his neck. Roaring, Smaug bellows out a massive wall of flames over the area where Bilbo had been standing. An unseen hand wraps around Kat’s arm and pulls her away and up some stairs. Reaching a hallway, Bilbo pulls a ring from his finger and becomes visible, continuing to run as Smaug rages about below, destroying pillars with echoing roars. Kat sees Thorin ahead of them, staring at the treasure and breathing heavily, and they run up to him.<br/>“You’re alive,” states Thorin in shock.<br/>“Not for much longer,” responds Kat.<br/>“Did you find the Arkenstone,” questions Thorin.<br/>“The dragon is coming,” reminds Bilbo.<br/>“The Arkenstone,” snaps Thorin.<br/>They all stand at the entrance to the tunnel, but Thorin blocks their way. They pause and look at each other for several seconds, then Thorin speaks again, more quietly.<br/>“Did you find it,” asks Thorin.<br/>Bilbo and Thorin stare at each other for several seconds, everyone breathing heavily as they had been running. Kat looks between the two of them and the look in Thorin’s eyes causes her blood to turn to ice in her veins. He looked completely uncaring of their safety, his only focus being the damned stone that had almost gotten her and her brother killed.<br/>“No. We have to get out,” answers Bilbo.<br/>Bilbo grabs Kat’s hand and tries to enter the tunnel, but Thorin swings his sword across it, blocking the entrance. He presses the blade against Bilbo and Bilbo stumbles back, pulling Kat behind him to protect her. Bilbo and Thorin face each other with the tip of Thorin’s sword against Bilbo’s chest, causing Kat to freeze completely. This wasn’t the Thorin she had gotten to know throughout their quest.<br/>“Thorin,” pleads Kat.<br/>Thorin steps forward, forcing the two hobbits to take another step back. Bilbo’s eyes are open in fear and Kat can feel tears stinging her eyes as she worries for the dwarf and her brother. Thorin’s face is steel and completely blank of emotion, making Kat even more fearful of him than the dragon. Suddenly, Bilbo looks off to the side and Thorin hears a sound in that direction. They all turn and see Smaug approaching over the mountain of treasure. Smaug, surely recognizing Thorin, snarls. The remainder of the company bursts out of the tunnel and faces Smaug, their weapons out. Smaug roars and rushes at them, his chest and neck glowing orange.<br/>“You will burn,” roars Smaug.<br/>Just as Smaug bellows fire at them, the company turns and jumps off the staircase. They tumble down the pile of treasure and land near the entrance to another tunnel, which they run into. Bifur grabs Kat and pulls her into the room, pushing her as far away from the entrance as possible. Angrily, Smaug breathes fire in all directions. Thorin, the last one through the door, is pushed in by the force of the flames. He runs into the room with the back of his coat on fire and throws himself on the ground and rolls to extinguish the flames. He quickly jumps back up and orders everyone to follow him as they run further into Erebor, the roars of Smaug following them.</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Golden Dragons</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry it's been so long since my last update! I was gone for a week and then we got a new puppy who's been a handful. Speaking of, if there are any mistakes or random letters in this chapter, it's because he didn't like that I was working on this and not paying attention to him lol. Let me know if you like it!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The company runs through Erebor, emerging from a tunnel and approaching a stone bridge over a chasm. Kat can’t help but think that the dwarves had designed this place to be a death trap of sorts, with long falls and high walkways. Thorin raises his hand and quiets the group as they near the foot of the bridge. Thorin peers around the edge of the tunnel and looks for any signs of Smaug.<br/>“We’ve given him the slip,” whispers Dori.<br/>“No, he’s too cunning for that,” replies Dwalin.<br/>“Where to now,” asks Bilbo.<br/>“The western guardroom. There may be a way out,” answers Thorin.<br/>“It’s too high. There’s no chance that way,” argues Balin.<br/>“It’s our only chance. We have to try,” states Thorin.<br/>Quietly, they tiptoe across the bridge, keeping a sharp eye out for Smaug. Suddenly, a coin falls to the floor right in front of Bilbo and rings loudly. They all freeze and look at Bilbo, who frantically checks his jacket to see if some coin had been stuck in a fold. Hearing another coin fall in front of Kat, they look up and see Smaug crawling just above them, looking for them. He hadn’t seen them. The coins that fell came from his chest and arms, where several coins and gems have embedded themselves after years of him sleeping on them. Thorin motions for everyone to keep moving and they eventually emerge in the western guardroom.<br/>“Stay close,” instructs Thorin.<br/>They all stop abruptly when they see that the guardroom is full of rotted, dust and cobweb covered corpses. Kat puts a hand to her mouth in shock and turns away, feeling dread rise in her throat. It seems like a landslide had blocked the exit, trapping the dwarves in the past in the room to die.<br/>“That’s it, then. There’s no way out,” mutters Dwalin.<br/>“The last of our kin. They must have come here, hoping beyond hope. We could try to reach the mines. We might last a few days,” suggests Balin.<br/>Kat clutches Bilbo’s hand at the suggestion of only lasting days, fear beginning to overwhelm her.<br/>“No. I will not die like this. Cowering, clawing for breath. We make for the forges,” orders Thorin.<br/>“He’ll see us, sure as death,” states Dwalin.<br/>“Not if we split up,” says Thorin.<br/>“Thorin, we’ll never make it,” argues Balin.<br/>“Some of us might. Lead him to the forges. We kill the dragon. If this is to end in fire, then we will all burn together,” says Thorin.<br/>They divide themselves into groups and Kat clings to Bilbo, refusing to leave his side. After that is decided, Thorin, Balin, Bilbo, and Kat run out onto the bridge from earlier.<br/>“This way,” instructs Thorin.<br/>A booming sound comes from nearby and Smaug appears.<br/>“Flee, flee! Run for your lives! There is nowhere to hide,” he roars.<br/>He lunges for the group, but turns at another sound. Dori, Ori, and Bombur are running on another bridge and yelling to distract Smaug. Smaug looks at them, then lunges toward them and they turn to run. As smaug chases the second group, the first group continues across the bridge. Suddenly the third group, consisting of Dwalin and Nori, run across another bridge and yell to distract Smaug, who turns and jumps at them. They run off the bridge and into a tunnel just before Smaug’s claw lands where they were. The fourth group, Gloin and Bifur, use this chance to run across a bridge and make it into a tunnel as well. Angrily, Smaug blows fire after them. He blows rapidly in an arc all around him, into all of the tunnels. His fire causes the stones beneath Gloin and Bifur to glow in heat. They reach a cliff and leap into the air, landing in large troughs which they slide down. They land in the buckets of a large hanging conveyor belt system. The first group runs through a large hallway. Balin turns into a side tunnel, Thorin continues forward with Bilbo and Kat at his heels.<br/>“It’s this way! This way! Come on,” calls Balin.<br/>“Thorin,” calls Bilbo as he and Kat stop by Balin.<br/>Thorin turns and begins to go back to them, but stops suddenly. They all see Smaug at the end of the hallway.<br/>“Fallow Balin,” yells Thorin.<br/>“Thorin,” cries Kat.<br/>“Come on,” instructs Balin.<br/>Balin pulls Kat and Bilbo into the side tunnel just as Smaug’s chest glows orange and he unleashes his fire throughout the hall. Kat can’t see what happens to Thorin, but she can hear his cries and the cries of Dwalin which gives her some hope. Balin pulls them through slits between tall stone pillars, revealing several massive dwarf furnaces, each at least ten yards high. Bilbo rushes over to Kat and pulls her in for a hug, keeping one arm wrapped around her protectively as they wait for the others, who soon join them. She receives a hug from Bifur and Bombur, and eventually Thorin and Nori run into the room, causing Kat to let out a sigh of relief. They had all made it so far.<br/>“The plan’s not going to work. These furnaces are stone cold,” states Dwalin.<br/>“He’s right. There’s no fire hot enough to set them ablaze,” agrees Balin.<br/>The furnaces are all dark, with no sign of fire within. Thorin turns back toward the pit and Kat quickly realizes where his train of thought is headed.<br/>“Yes we do,” she announces, receiving a proud smile from Thorin.<br/>“She’s correct. I did not look to see you so easily outwitted,” calls Thorin.<br/>Smaug’s claw emerges from the pit, his body following it, causing Kat’s stomach to drop. She may have known what Thorin was planning, but that didn’t mean she enjoys the thought of taunting a massive dragon who could easily kill her and everyone she loves.<br/>“You have grown slow and fat in your dotage,” taunts Thorin, causing Smaug to snarl. “Slug.”<br/>As Smaug snarls and advances, Thorin gets behind a pillar and yells to the others to do the same. Kat trips while rushing toward a pillar and Thorin grabs her, pulling her so she’s pinned between his body and the pillar he’s hiding behind. Everyone manages to take cover just as Smaug unleashes his flame at them. The fire goes past the pillars and Kat can feel the unbearable heat, knowing some of her hair must have gotten singed as she buries her burning face into Thorin’s chest to block some of it out. She can hear the others yelling from pain, heat and pressure, just as she was. As Smaug stops, fire suddenly comes out of the bottoms of the furnaces, and they begin glowing and working, causing Smaug to growl in confusion and anger. The dwarves run from the pillars as Smaug begins battering at them with his head. Kat notices absently that they’re extremely strong, like a latticework of metal, but they still begin to bend under Smaug’s tremendous strength.<br/>“Bombur! Get those bellows working! Go,” shouts Thorin.<br/>Bombur runs and leaps onto a chain next to a forge. The chain slides down with his weight, and he lands on the handle of a massive bellows. Kat would have been in awe had she not been running for her life. The bellows compress and blast air into the furnace, which exhumes bright blue flames. On top of the furnaces is a massive pile of unrefined gold, at least ten yards in diameter. Thorin turns and sees the latticework continue to bend from Smaug’s bashing.<br/>“Bilbo, Kat! Up there, on my mark, pull that lever,” instructs Thorin.<br/>He points them toward a lever high up on a mound and the siblings run toward it. The dwarves run toward the forges as the latticework begins to break, and Thorin grabs Balin.<br/>“Balin, can you still make some flash-flame,” asks Thorin.<br/>“Aye. It’ll only take a jiffy,” states Balin.<br/>He grabs some of the other dwarves to help him and runs off. Dwalin looks at the latticework, which is bending dangerously from Smaug’s blows.<br/>“We don’t have a jiffy,” he murmurs.<br/>Under the force of Smaug’s onslaught, it finally gives way and falls to the ground. Smaug storms into the furnace room, looking about and growling. Kat and Bilbo clamber up some steps and reach the lever mounted high on a tower. Smaug notices them and begins walking toward them. As he raises his head to look at them, he looks to the side and sees Thorin standing there. Smaug turns and snarls at Thorin.<br/>“Now,” cries Thorin.<br/>Bilbo and Kat jump into the air and pull down on the lever just as Smaug lunges at Thorin. Huge jets of water burst out of carved faces in the wall behind the hobbits and slam into Smaug, knocking him off balance and quenching the flames he was beginning to blow at Thorin. Smaug slides into the side of a furnace from the force of the water, and the glow in his chest disappears. Roaring in rage, Smaug flaps into the air and begins thrashing about madly. The jets of water cause a watermill to begin turning some gears, which causes the various rope conveyor belts to begin operating. Kat notices that some of them are full of heavy chunks of rock and ore.<br/>Bombur continues going up and down on his chain, pumping the bellows and turning the furnace fire bue. Atop the furnaces, the solid impure gold begins to glow and melt. Smaug begins crawling toward Thorin again and above him, Gloin and Bifur have arrived on the bucket conveyor belt. As Kat and Bilbo begin to climb down the mound, Smaug approaches Thorin. Suddenly, there is a flash of blue light on the side of his head. Balin, Ori, and Dori are throwing flash-flame bombs at Smaug. However, Smaug is not at all fazed by them and continues toward Thorin. Above Smaug, Gloin raises his axe and cuts the rope of the conveyor belt full of heavy rocks below him, dropping tons of rocks on Smaug and making him fall to the ground, roaring.<br/>Kat looks up and notices that the gold atop the furnaces is completely melted now. Thorin runs over to a furnace and pulls on a chain, opening a gate which allows the molten gold to flow out of the furnaces and through troughs built into the ground. Smaug, tangled in the ropes of the conveyor belt, thrashes about and hits the rope of the conveyor belt Gloin and Bifur are in, breaking it and knocking it to the floor.<br/>“Bifur,” Kat screams.<br/>The two miraculously land on the ground, unhurt. Beneath Smaug, rivers of molten gold flow through the troughs on the floor. Thorin turns and begins running, shouting back at the dwarves.<br/>“Lead him to the Gallery of the Kings,” he cries.<br/>As Smaug thrashes about, one of the heavy metal buckets tangled on him goes flying toward Bilbo and Kat on top of the mound. The two yell and duck, Bilbo pulling Kat under him to shield her. The bucket misses but takes large chunks out of the wall.<br/>Thorin grabs a wheelbarrow and runs while pushing it, dodging Smaug’s thrashing limbs. Smaug’s tail smashes into the base of the mound, crashing it and worrying the two hobbits. Thorin throws the wheelbarrow into a channel of gold and leaps into it, floating on the gold and being carried along. Seeing this, Smaug roars and whips his head around, finally getting rid of the ropes and buckets tangled around him. He stomps over to a small entrance at the base of the mound where all the troughs of liquid gold join and lead out of the room. Before he can get to Thorin, Thorin on his wheelbarrow floats through the entrance, just as the mound collapses and Bilbo and Kat fall. They manage to hit the ground rolling, something they had learned as mischievous children. Smaug sees the two hobbits and snarls.<br/>“Keep going, Bilbo, Kat! Run,” shouts Thorin.<br/>The two take off running with Smaug in pursuit and they leap onto a large stone slide before Smaug can grab them. Smaug slides after them, demolishing all the stone structures nearby with his wings.<br/>The trough Thorin is floating in ends at a drop. As his wheelbarrow goes over the edge, Thorin leaps from it and grabs onto a chain. The molten gold drops into a large stone mold beneath.<br/>Bilbo and Kat, still running from Smaug, run through a doorway and into a massive hall adorned with banners hundreds of feet tall. Just as they run in, the wall above the doorway explodes as Smaug jumps through it. They run frantically from the flying rocks, but get caught beneath the cloth of a falling banner and knocked to the floor. Smaug leaps to the floor and begins shouting angrily.<br/>“You think you could deceive me, Barrel-rider,” roars Smaug as the two peak out from the banner. “You have come from Laketown. There is- is some sort of scheme hatched between these filthy dwarves and those miserable cup-trading Lakemen. Those sniveling cowards with their longbows and black arrows! Perhaps it is time I paid them a visit.”<br/>Smaug turns to go to Laketown and Bilbo gasps. They scramble out from under the banner, Kat wincing as she feels a twinge of pain from what she can only assume is from the flying debris from earlier.<br/>“This isn’t their fault,” cries Kat.<br/>“Wait! You cannot go to Laketown,” yells Bilbo.<br/>Hearing this, Smaug stops for a moment and turns toward the two running after him. All Kat can think about are Bard’s children, how innocent and kind they were.<br/>“You care about them, do you? Good. Then you can watch them die,” snarls Smaug.<br/>Smaug turns and strides off down the hall. Suddenly, a voice sounds from one end of the hall, where there is a massive stone structure that looks roughly like a dwarf. The voice is Thorin’s and Kat sees he is standing atop the structure.<br/>“Here, you witless worm,” shouts Thorin.<br/>Smaug stops in his tracks, snarling and squinting in anger.<br/>“You,” snarls Smaug.<br/>“I am taking back what you stole,” growls Thorin.<br/>“You would take nothing from me, dwarf. I laid low your warriors of old. I instilled terror in the hearts of men. I am king under the mountain,” retorts Smaug, stalking forward until his head is level with Thorin.<br/>“This is not your kingdom. These are dwarf land, this is dwarf gold, and we will have our revenge,” states Thorin.<br/>As Thorin speaks, Smaug’s chest and neck glow with fire, and Thorin slowly reaches up toward a rope above him. Just as Smaug opens his mouth, Thorin yells something in Khuzdul and yanks on the rope. A pin behind the stone falls out, releasing heavy wooden bands and chains that had been wrapped tightly around the stone. Smaug rears his head in confusion. The other dwarves pull mightily on their chains and more pins similar to the first are pulled out of the stone. The stone structure, which is now revealed to be the mold into which the liquid gold from earlier poured into, falls apart and reveals a massive statue of a dwarf king made entirely out of solid gold. Thorin swings away on a rope to escape the falling rocks. Smaug looks at the golden statue, which is even larger than him, in awe and desire. As he approaches it, his mouth opens slightly in greed. Suddenly, the gold around the statue’s eyes warps and then explodes into liquid. Kat realizes that the gold in the statue hadn’t had time to fully solidify yet, causing the entire structure to be unstable, collapsing and exploding into burning hot liquid. Smaug roars in anger as the statue melts and scrabbles backward to escape the gold. However, he cannot move fast enough and the tidal wave of gold hits him and knocks him over. As he roars, he is entirely smothered and drowned in the gold, which fills the entire hall in a layer several feet deep.<br/>The gold settles and no sign of Smaug is seen. The dwarves begin to smile in joy, but suddenly, the surface of the golden lake explodes as Smaug leaps out. He is entirely covered in gold, and he screams in anger and pain.<br/>“Revenge? Revenge! I will show you revenge,” roars Smaug.<br/>As the company looks on in shock, Smaug runs down the hallway and takes off in flight, heading straight toward Laketown. Bilbo and Kat run out of the destroyed gates of Erebor and climb up some ruins, looking after the flying Smaug. Bilbo falls to his knees while Kat watches with a hand over her mouth. Bilbo looks over at Kat with tearful eyes.<br/>“What have we done,” he whispers.</p>
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